Complete Streets Training Module 5 – Planning and Design Elements

Module introduction Chapter 4, Planning and Design Elements Integrating area type and land use with street function Cross-section zone descriptions Street cross-sections and guidelines Trade-offs/balance of comfort, safety, operations for all modes ADA considerations

Street types: Integrating land use & street function To define the context of a complete street, first identify the land use context Both current and future Area Type Considerations Urban Suburban Rural Urban Urban areas have the most intense street use by the widest range of users. These streets may have to accommodate various modes with dedicated facilities, separate bike lanes for bicyclists, on-street parking to serve local businesses, and transit areas, with either dedicated travel lanes or dedicated loading and multi-modal connection areas. The transition areas between the different uses require special attention. For instance, planting strips and other buffers that separate the curb from the sidewalk should safely accommodate passenger access in areas where on-street parking or a transit stop is provided. In these types of areas, a hardscaped amenity zone may provide the better treatment. Suburban Suburban areas are located at the periphery of more urban areas or may be transitioning to urban areas. These areas may have a limited street network and be less intensively developed, creating challenges for providing pedestrian connections and accommodations for bicyclists as well as transit users. Bicycle lanes are the preferred treatment for accommodating bicyclists on higher volume and higher speed suburban streets. Along auto-oriented commercial strip areas, driveways can sometimes account for more than half of the sidewalk length within a block, creating potential bicycle/pedestrian-auto conflicts. Suburban areas are often expected to transition through time into more urban conditions. Therefore, they represent the greatest opportunities and needs for establishing better street networks (by providing more streets), lower target speeds, and better street designs to serve current and future users, who will be driving, walking, bicycling, and using transit. Additional streets and better networks should be provided as these areas develop to help achieve these objectives. Rural While recognizing that most streets (and complete streets) are in cities and towns, it is also important to consider how appropriate facilities can be provided in more rural environments. Rural areas may have the least network connectivity and, therefore, might have the most demand on single facilities. Travel lanes often need to accommodate motor vehicles, bicyclists, and transit with pedestrian access provided on shoulders or off-street. While rural areas can provide challenges to accommodating a full range of users, many times the provision of paved shoulders, multi-use paths or other facilities can safely and comfortably address user needs and provide complete streets. Different design treatments will be appropriate for different contexts and constraints. Pg 51

Integrate land use with street types Street Design Type Main Street Avenue Boulevard Parkway Local/Subdivision St. Rural Road Pedestrian/Bicycle Oriented Auto/ Truck Oriented SPEAKER NOTES In order to develop complete street networks in communities throughout North Carolina, a variety of street types have been defined and will be applied as complete streets. They represent a spectrum ranging from very pedestrian-oriented to very auto-oriented but, as described in this chapter, each can and should include ways to provide for the safe and comfortable travel of motorists, bicyclists, pedestrians, and transit users. Street design decisions and land use decisions should complement one another and achieve a pleasant balance between land use and street design. What is the existing land use type, mix and density? What are the typical urban design characteristics? How does the street currently function? How does this corridor function within the larger transportation network? What is the existing quality of service (safety and accessibility) for each mode? Define context first before developing possible solutions: land use and context have significant impact on design and use of street. Describe the different components that inform context (i.e. different land uses, area types, socio-economic factors, accessibility /mobility constraints and opportunities, etc). Future conditions: What is the jurisdiction’s future land use vision? Does the adopted plan(s) make specific recommendations? What are the projected traffic volumes? Are pedestrian, bicycle and transit trips projected? What trip generators (existing and future) are in the vicinity? What are the locally adopted multimodal plans or policies? Functional Classification Local Collector Arterial Pg 54

Integrate land use with street types Street types represent a spectrum from pedestrian- to auto-oriented All include design elements to improve safety and operation for bicyclists, pedestrians, and transit Rural roads are primary connections across numerous towns and should serve all users Street Design Type Pedestrian/ Bicycle Oriented Auto/ Truck Oriented Main Street Avenue Boulevard Parkway Local/Subdivision St. Rural Road

Integrate land use with street types Main Street May function as an arterial, collector, or local street - AADT does not drive the design decisions Designed to carry vehicles at low speeds A destination street Serves substantial pedestrian traffic as well as transit and bicycles Pg 55

Integrate land use with street types Avenue May function as an arterial, collector, or a local route (rural setting) - AADT does not drive the design decisions Low to moderate speeds Urban street serving a range of traffic levels within and between various area types Includes wide sidewalks, bicycle facilities, and transit amenities AADT does not drive the design decisions Pg 55

Integrate land use with street types Boulevard Arterial designed for moderate speeds Multiple lanes and a street median Sidewalks with planting strips and on-street bike lanes Building setbacks will typically be deeper than on avenues Pg 56

Integrate land use with street types Parkway Functions as an arterial designed with control of access to carry vehicles at moderate to high speeds Land uses are set back Pedestrian and bicycle traffic usually provided for on adjacent paths Convenient access to off-street transit stations, stops, and park-and-ride lots Pg 56

Integrate land use with street types Rural Road May function as an arterial, collector or local route Range of speeds Wide paved shoulders can be used to provide bicycle and pedestrian accommodations Multi-use paths separated from the roadway may also be an appropriate treatment Pg 57

Integrate land use with street types Local/subdivision Street Serve as a critical element in the street network, linking residential and business area Low speed Direct access to local land uses On-street parking typically occurs Pedestrians and bicyclists are expected SPEAKER NOTES Local streets are treated differently than the other street types in this document for several reasons. First, these are the streets that are typically built through the land development process, rather than as capital/public projects. Therefore, the local/subdivision street cross-sections are meant to be applied more prescriptively than are the cross-sections for the other street types. This offers predictability to those creating these streets. Second, even though these crosssections are more prescriptive, there are several different crosssections, to allow for the flexibility to establish the “right” street for a wide variety of land development types and intensities. This provides for both predictability and flexibility as land uses are being developed. These street types are offered here as examples to communities seeking to apply complete streets through their ordinances. Moving forward, NCDOT will accept these street types for maintenance in communities that implement complete streets, provided the street types are appropriately applied and have prior approval from NCDOT. Pg 57

Selecting street types Local/subdivision streets: Why multiple cross-sections? To reflect the likelihood that on-street parking will be used The intent is to not create overly-wide streets that make it more difficult to maintain low speeds Cross-sections selected by development density DRAFT COMMENTS Some concern about using “selection.” Don’t want to assume that the whole project is one street type (Daniel Carter)

Selecting street types Pg 60 Matrix of area type, land use, and street type for initial street type guidance (NOT a selection tool) Area Type Land Use Main Street Avenue Blvd Pkway Rural Road Art. Coll. Local Urban CBD Urban/Suburban Main Street Urban/Suburban Avenue Urban/Sub-urban Center Res. Suburban Corridor Res Rural Village Rural Main Street Rural Avenue Rural Blvd Rural Pkway Developed Country DRAFT COMMENTS Not a selection tool. To be used to show the different types (Alison Whitesell and Richard Hancock) Understanding of where they fall. Land use & context based decision. Watch street names… not actually a blvd by CS (Vivian C.) SPEAKER NOTES By defining and implementing complete street designs that meet the intent of different street types and a variety of land use contexts, NCDOT has a better chance of meeting the multiple objectives of the different users of our streets. This section identifies planning and design criteria that represent both land use and street function. As described in the previous section, different street types have been defined: main street, avenue, boulevard, parkway, rural road, and local/ subdivision street. These street types are meant to represent the range of state-maintained streets throughout North Carolina. The matrix shown in Figure 5 lets the planner/designer see the area type, land use, and street type together. The matrix provides initial guidance about appropriate street types for general contexts, but should not be applied without more information. With this selection made, the design input team should consider other functional and context-based criteria to help select the appropriate cross-section for the street.

Selecting street types: Functional criteria Pg 62 Street Type Matrix DRAFT COMMENTS Message: speeds make the facilities operate at the desired CS. Ie: lower speeds on a parkway make it better for peds (Vivian C.)

Selecting street types: Functional criteria Functional Classification Target Speed speed that is intended for the facility; not necessarily the posted speed or design speed Desire is for design speed to match the target speed Traffic Volume Low: < 8,000 vpd Moderate: 6,000 - 24,000 vpd High: > 20,000 vpd Access Density Traffic Signal spacing: Low: ≤1 signal per mile Moderate: 1 - 3 signals per mile High: >3 signals per mile SPEAKER NOTES Once the appropriate street type has been initially identified, the design input team can refer to the more detailed functional criteria shown in Figure 6. These functional criteria include classification, target speed, traffic volume, and access density, all of which assist in defining the ultimate cross-section. As with Figure 5, this information is intended to provide guidance to the design input team and is not intended to replace the project development process described in Chapter 2. OR Access Point spacing: Low: >1,000-foot spacing Moderate: 400- to 1,000-foot spacing High: <400 foot spacing

Selecting street types Street cross-sections – determined by the process Key elements Street cross-section zones Dimensional guidelines allow flexibility (not prescriptive) Cross-sections should fit the land use context (mix and match as needed) Dimensional guidelines provide ranges that allow flexibility Cross-sections should fit the land use context (mix and match cross-sections as needed) DRAFT COMMENTS 3rd bullet: process determines section(s) (Kelly Becker, Daniel Carter, Vivian C.) Apply cross-sections to context (Alison Whitesell and Richard Hancock) Work through matrix (Vivian C.) Pgs 70-93

Street cross-section zones Parking/ Transit Motor Vehicle Bicycle Green Sidewalk Development

Street cross-section zones Parking/ Transit Motor Vehicle Bicycle Green Sidewalk Development

Street cross-section zones Parking/ Transit Motor Vehicle Bicycle Green Sidewalk Development

Street cross-section zones Parking/ Transit Motor Vehicle Bicycle Green Sidewalk Development

Street cross-section zones Parking/ Transit Motor Vehicle Bicycle Green Sidewalk Development

Street cross-section zones Parking/ Transit Motor Vehicle Bicycle Green Sidewalk Development

Street cross-section zones Parking/ Transit Motor Vehicle Bicycle Green Sidewalk Development

Street cross-sections and guidelines Pg 70 URBAN/SUBURBAN MAIN STREET

Street cross-sections and guidelines Pg 71 URBAN/SUBURBAN MAIN STREET DRAFT COMMENTS Maybe not use all the cross sections, adjust to local conditions and use one x-section (Vivian C.)

Street cross-sections and guidelines Pg 73 RURAL VILLAGE MAIN STREET

Street cross-sections and guidelines Pg 75 URBAN / SUBURBAN AVENUE

Street cross-sections and guidelines Pg 77 RURAL AVENUE

Street cross-sections and guidelines Pg 79 URBAN / SUBURBAN BOULEVARD

Street cross-sections and guidelines Pg 81 RURAL BOULEVARD

Street cross-sections and guidelines Pg 83 URBAN/SUBURBAN PARKWAY

Street cross-sections and guidelines Pg 85 RURAL PARKWAY

Street cross-sections and guidelines Pg 87 RURAL ROAD The challenge here is the space. Putting the multiuse path or sidewalk behind the ditch requires greater amount of land usage, possibly land that the DOT does not own. Another challenge is funding – funds are predominantly provided for resurfacing within the existing surface width. Expanding the width will require other sources of funding.

Street cross-sections and guidelines Pg 89 MULTI-USE PATH

Street cross-sections and guidelines Pg 91 LOCAL / SUBDIVISION STREET: RESIDENTIAL

Street cross-sections and guidelines LOCAL / SUBDIVISION STREET: OFFICE, COMMERCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL Pg 93

Balance of comfort, safety, & operations Selecting lane widths (bicycle and motor vehicle) Consider parallel routes Consider speeds, volumes, topography, parking, heavy vehicles Don’t design minimum traffic lane width next to minimum bike lane width DRAFT COMMENTS Don’t want min. traffic lane width next to min. bike lane width. Be consistent locally (Daniel Carter, Vivian C.) Think consistently locally. Within a town be consistent in approach (Vivian C.)

What’s wrong? Sharrow too close to cars, used with edgeline

Take away messages Each mode has unique design elements and considerations There are different types of street cross sections for certain area types