[Ord. No. 39-1998, § 5.1, 12-1-1998]
The City engineer may request the developer to submit a prepared traffic and/or parking impact report for any proposed development where the proposed development is calculated to generate an increase of more than 35 new vehicle trips during the peak hour (times when the highest traffic volumes are recorded, generally 7:00 to 9:00 a.m. and 3:00 to 6:00 p.m.). This standard sets the threshold for determining when a traffic/parking study is required. The traffic generation calculation will be performed by the developer's engineer using data contained in the 1982 edition (or current edition) of the Institute of Transportation Engineers Trip Generation Handbook, which is on file in the City code enforcement office. A parking assessment may be requested when the proposed development can be expected to have a total parking demand of 30 spaces or more as determined by values contained in the 1985 (or current edition) of the Institute of Transportation Engineers handbook titled "Parking Generation," which is also on file in the City code enforcement office. The developer will be required to retain a state-registered professional engineer, specializing in traffic/transportation engineering, to complete any necessary studies. All issues and questions raised by the City will be adequately responded to as determined by the City engineer. The planning board may request a traffic study even if the increase is less than 35 new vehicle trips, if it is determined by the City engineer that one is warranted.
[Ord. No. 39-1998, § 5.2, 12-1-1998]
(a) 
Vehicular access to developments shall be from streets or roads that have adequate capacity to accommodate the additional traffic generated by the development. Level of service after development at intersections on major access routes to the development and at the intersection of any development access drive or proposed street shall be at a minimum at pre-development levels of service. The developer shall mitigate development impacts that result in a reduced level of service.
(b) 
For development that will result in a reduction in level of service, the level of service restriction may be lowered by the City engineer after consultation with the state department of transportation, if applicable, and upon written recommendation from the public safety committee. At a minimum, recommendations shall be based upon adopted goals and policies.
(c) 
The City engineer may waive and/or modify any of the requirements of this section if the developer's certified traffic engineer can demonstrate that they are not necessary because of size, type, or location of the development and/or because other traffic impact analysis methods or procedures are equally effective.
[Ord. No. 39-1998, § 5.3, 12-1-1998]
The procedure for conducting a traffic impact analysis is as follows:
(1) 
Inventory existing and proposed land use.
a. 
Existing land use. Site location and setting are important in determining the potential impacts of development on a given site. The site description shall include the following:
1. 
Exact physical location of the proposed development.
2. 
Physical characteristics such as land configuration, unique features, water bodies, trees, developable acres, and topography.
3. 
Existing land uses, including zoning and land use classification.
4. 
Land uses of adjacent property.
b. 
Proposed land use. Adopted comprehensive plans, community development plans, long range plans, or similar documents shall be reviewed when inventorying proposed land uses. This will provide an indication of the type and direction of future development that is generally acceptable to the community and that may be facilitated by community facilities such as streets, sewers, and water lines. Quantification of trip generation shall also be developed.
(2) 
Inventory existing and proposed transportation system.
a. 
Existing transportation system. An understanding of the nature and function of the existing and proposed transportation system in the area near a proposed development site is essential for predicting traffic patterns, performing the traffic analysis, and developing necessary improvement alternatives. The following information shall be provided:
1. 
Current and proposed street network, including functional classification, route jurisdiction, and the number of moving traffic lanes.
2. 
Geometrics and characteristics, especially at critical intersections, including such items as curb parking and potential street improvements.
3. 
Intersection traffic control.
4. 
Signal timing and system operation at signalized intersections.
5. 
Existing or proposed intersection and development access points and configurations.
6. 
Existing and proposed rights-of-way.
7. 
Available hourly traffic counts.
8. 
Peak period turning movements at critical intersections.
9. 
Accident information.
10. 
Transit routes/headways.
11. 
Transit stops/station locations.
b. 
Proposed transportation system.
1. 
Comprehensive transportation plan.
2. 
Future improvements, committed and planned.
(3) 
Forecasted nonsite traffic volumes. Nonsite traffic consists of through traffic volumes, having neither an origin nor a destination in the vicinity of the development, and traffic generated by developments adjacent to and affected by, or having an impact on, the proposed development. Methods used to determine nonsite traffic volumes shall include use of the following:
a. 
Comprehensive transportation plan or related data projections; check land use and socioeconomic information.
b. 
Typical annual growth rates; provide sufficient historic volume information and develop factors to apply to existing counts.
c. 
Estimate development-generated units of measure and rates for components.
(4) 
Site-related traffic.
a. 
Divide activities associated with development into components.
b. 
Identify trip generation units of measure and rates for components.
c. 
Estimate development-generated units of measure and rates for components.
d. 
Identify the critical hours of analysis such as the adjacent street morning and evening peak hours and/or the proposed development peak hour of activity.
e. 
Trip distribution: The trips generated shall then be distributed to the transportation system on the basis of land use, population or employment, distance, accessibility, and any local factors affecting distribution. The distribution should reflect conditions for the analysis year, and the methodology should be well documented.
f. 
Modal split: If the magnitude of the development is significant, a determination of the mode of travel may be necessary. The determination of trips generated is most likely in terms of vehicle trips; therefore, an assessment of vehicle occupancy shall be performed to convert vehicle-trips to person-trips. Then, the alternative modes of travel shall be analyzed as to their attractiveness to development-generated traffic.
g. 
Trip assignments: Trips for various transportation modes shall be assigned to existing and proposed transportation networks based on available system capacity, convenience, and other relevant criteria. Traffic assignments shall reflect logical routing and realistic roadway capacity potential.
(5) 
Traffic analysis.
a. 
Combine non-site and site-related traffic (i.e., the traffic volumes for the various stages of the proposed development and the determined analysis periods: morning, evening, and/or development peak hours, estimated in previous steps, in order to obtain estimates of total projected traffic volumes).
b. 
Capacity analyses shall be conducted for all critical intersections and access points during peak traffic periods. Critical intersections usually fall into the following categories:
1. 
All major intersections within a certain distance of the development as agreed to by the City engineer.
2. 
All affected intersections where development traffic would increase the volume to a level that would warrant improvements.
3. 
All affected intersections that operate or would, after development, operate below design levels of service.
c. 
The results of the capacity analyses shall be used to identify street and road segments and intersections near the development that are or will, after development, be deficient in capacity; and to identify safety-related constraints.
(6) 
Street/road and access improvements. The previous information is then used to identify and evaluate improvements that can be made to maintain acceptable levels of service and to help decision-makers to determine whether the impact of the proposed development on the surrounding area is acceptable. Level of service D shall be considered appropriate for urban design unless otherwise indicated by the City engineer. The 1988 growth management plan, section 3.3.3, defines levels of service. The following elements shall be addressed as applicable:
a. 
External street/road system improvements.
1. 
Review of design vehicle requirements.
2. 
New streets/roads, lanes.
3. 
New or modified interchangers.
4. 
Additional through lanes.
5. 
Turn lanes (including storage lengths).
6. 
Acceleration/deceleration and bypass lanes.
7. 
New signals.
8. 
Modification of existing signals.
b. 
Internal street system.
1. 
Review of design vehicle requirements.
2. 
Lane requirements.
3. 
Traffic control.
4. 
Driveway design.
c. 
Evaluation of improvements.
1. 
Impact on operating characteristics.
2. 
Cost.
[Ord. No. 39-1998, § 5.4, 12-1-1998]
(a) 
Vehicle storage area; base requirements for driveways. Driveways not subject to other standards shall have a vehicle storage area for purposes of safely entering onto the street or lane, adjacent to the shoulder of the road. This area shall be 20 feet in length for the width of the drive, and have grades of not more than 6%, up or down, from the edge of the shoulder. An existing structure whose proximity to the right-of-way is such that it prohibits this relationship will be exempt. Minimum base requirement for a driveway is 18 inches of aggregate base course. Regular usage of a driveway, in a working operation, by commercial trucks over 23,000 GVW requires 24 inches of gravel base.
(b) 
Curb openings in residential districts. No permit for a permanent street curb opening in a residential district shall be issued for a use which is not listed as a permitted use or permitted use requiring planning board review in that district. Residential districts are outlined in chapter 102.
(c) 
Authority of City engineer. The City engineer is authorized and directed to determine locations and widths for driveways in the City in accordance with the standards specified in this section.
(d) 
Surfacing. All new surface for curb cuts or driveway openings within the right-of-way will be bituminous hot top, and such work shall extend to the rear of the sidewalk line only. All costs for such cuts shall be borne by the property owner, and, if the City does the work, the work will be paid for in advance on a per-foot basis as approved by public works director.
(e) 
Drainage. For drainage requirements, see article VI of this chapter.
(f) 
Single- and two-family driveways (up to four parking spaces).
(1) 
Width. Any site shall have a minimum twelve-foot driveway. Where multifamily dwellings are proposed, a minimum twenty-foot driveway shall be required.
(2) 
Location. Wherever possible, driveways shall be located on the lot in a manner to provide a minimum twenty-foot spacing between existing or proposed driveways.
(g) 
Commercial, industrial and multifamily driveways (three units or more).
(1) 
Width of one-way driveways. Any site with driveway access to a street shall have a minimum fifteen-foot-wide driveway for one-way ingress or egress. Driveways shall permit traffic to enter and leave the site simultaneously without conflict in aisles, parking or maneuvering areas. Both the entrance and exit drives shall be marked with appropriate signage. Maximum driveway width shall not exceed 24 feet.
(2) 
Width of two-way driveways. Any site with driveway access to a street shall have a minimum twenty-four-foot wide and maximum thirty-five-foot wide driveway for two-way ingress and egress.
(3) 
Curbing.
a. 
Where driveways enter on an existing street, the full radius of the driveway shall be curbed if necessary.
b. 
The radius shall be a minimum of 15 feet. Where truck traffic is anticipated, the radius may be increased up to a maximum of 25 feet based on the turning radius of the vehicles anticipated to enter and exit the site.
c. 
If curb cuts or culverts are required, they will be as approved by the City engineer, and installed by public works department at the developer's cost.
(4) 
Maneuvering area. The area within the site to which a driveway provides access shall be of sufficient size to allow all necessary functions for loading, unloading and parking maneuvers to be carried out on the site and completely off the street right-of-way.
(5) 
Location and spacing. The location and spacing of driveways shall be determined as follows:
a. 
Along local streets, access driveways to corner lots shall be located a minimum of 35 feet from the intersection of the projection of the right-of-way line to the centerline of the driveway, except as otherwise provided in this section.
b. 
Along arterial, collector and industrial streets, access driveways to corner lots shall be located a minimum of 150 feet from the intersection of the projection of the right-of-way line to the centerline of the driveway, except as otherwise provided in this section.
c. 
Along arterial, collector and industrial streets, minimum acceptable spacing between double or multiple driveways shall meet the following criteria:
Speed Limit
(mph)
Minimum Separation
(feet)
30
125
35
150
40
185
45
230
Distances between adjacent one-way driveways with the ingress drive separated from the egress drive may be 1/2 the distance shown in this subsection.
d. 
Driveways shall be located in the most appropriate location, based on the existing and proposed adjacent and opposing driveways and land use.
(6) 
Number of driveways.
a. 
One one-way driveway shall be permitted for ingress and one for egress purposes to any development per street frontage. These may be combined at one location.
b. 
A joint access driveway shall be considered as adequate access for any two adjacent sites and shall be encouraged.
(7) 
Off-street vehicular circulation. An off-street facility shall have full internal vehicular circulation and storage. Vehicle circulation shall be completely contained within the facility, and vehicles located within one portion of the facility shall have access to all other portions without using the adjacent street system.
(8) 
Off-street truck maneuvering. Where the use of a parcel includes truck loading, parking or service facilities, adequate space shall be provided such that all truck maneuvering is performed off the street. The design truck shall be one most appropriate for the operation.
(h) 
Ingress lanes (slip lanes).
(1) 
Ingress left-turn lane. A twelve-foot-wide left-turn lane with appropriate storage and transition, based on the Institute of Traffic Engineers accepted standards, shall be provided at each driveway where the peak hour inbound left-turn volume is 30 vehicles or more.
(2) 
Ingress right-turn lanes. For any site, a twelve-foot-wide right-turn lane with appropriate storage and transition, based on the Institute of Traffic Engineers accepted standards, shall be provided at each driveway where the highway average daily traffic exceeds 10,000 vehicles per day, permitted highway speeds exceed 35 miles per hour, and driveway volume exceeds 1,000 vehicles per day with at least 40 right-turn movements during peak periods. For any site, a right-turn lane as described in this subsection shall be provided at each driveway where right-turn ingress volumes exceed 75 vehicles per peak hour.
(i) 
Maximum length of driveway.
(1) 
The maximum length of a driveway within the area zoned for shore land protection shall be 500 feet.
(2) 
A driveway may have any length, as it could access a parking lot or a single-unit residence at a distance from the street. Any one-lane driveway over 500 feet in length must provide a fifty-foot by ten-foot passing lane at five-hundred-foot intervals for the purpose of passing emergency vehicles running in the opposite direction to traffic.
(j) 
Driveways with steep slopes. For any driveway with any slopes steeper than 12%, the applicant must provide a statement or plan that addresses maintenance (especially winter maintenance), erosion, and drainage. Should there be a question of safety (emergency vehicles, access use, etc.), then the approval of the City public safety director is required.
[Ord. No. 39-1998, § 5.5, 12-1-1998]
Where driveways or roadways are proposed to enter onto an existing street, vehicular sight distance shall conform to the recommended sight distance listed in this section, and shall not be less than the minimum sight distance standard. The minimum sight distance standards are taken from table 5-4, page 127 of the Institute of Transportation Engineers Handbook, current edition, titled Transportation and Land Development, which is on file in the City services engineering bureau. Vehicular sight distance shall be calculated with the height of eye at 3.5 feet and the height of an object at 3.5 feet.
Posted Speed Limit
Recommended Sight Distance
(feet)
Minimum Sight Distance
(feet)
25 mph
250
150
30 mph
300
200
35 mph
350
250
40 mph
400
325
45 mph
450
400
50 mph
500
475
[Ord. No. 39-1998, § 5.7, 12-1-1998; Ord. of 1-5-2010(1)]
(a) 
Parking space requirements. The standard parking space requirements are outlined in article VIII of this chapter.
(b) 
Aisles. Vehicular access shall be provided by one or more aisles. Minimum widths of aisles shall comply with section 98-242 standards.
[Ord. No. 39-1998, § 5.8, 12-1-1998; Ord. of 1-5-2010(1)]
Where off-street parking is required or provided, the following standards shall apply:
(1) 
Driveways shall be designed in accordance with the traffic standards for driveways; see section 98-154.
(2) 
When surfacing permanent lots, there shall be a minimum 12 inches of gravel base below the pavement. If heavy vehicles (GVW 23,000 pounds or greater) routinely use the parking lot after final construction, the depth of base shall be 24 inches, or as determined by proper engineering analysis and subject to approval by the City engineer. For all parking lots:
a. 
All water shall be drained from the base material by ditching or underdrain.
b. 
No grading or geometry that allows trapped water in the base shall be permitted.
c. 
In the case of slopes draining down to the parking lot, perimeter drains shall be required.
(3) 
A storm drain system is required such that stormwater shall not cross any public sidewalk or street. The parking lot shall be graded so that there is no standing water.
(4) 
When parking lots abut the street, a continuous curb guard or wheel stop, at least six inches in height and permanently anchored, shall be provided and maintained for a width of at least three feet along that part of the lot line abutting the street. Alternatively, a continuous bumper guard of adequate strength, at least 20 inches in height, shall be provided and maintained, so that bumpers of vehicles cannot project beyond its face towards the street or lot line involved.
(5) 
The surface of parking lots and parking areas must be paved, except parking areas that are used exclusively for a single-family or two-family residence.
Notwithstanding this requirement, the Planning Board has the authority to waive this requirement and to allow the use of a crushed stone surface for any parking lot or parking area that satisfies one or more of the following criteria:
a. 
A parking lot that serves 10 or less vehicles;
b. 
A parking lot which serves a use that experiences a low turnover in parking demand;
c. 
A parking lot that serves a periodic or occasional type of use, such as but not limited to a church;
d. 
A parking lot that mostly serves as an overflow parking area;
e. 
A parking lot located in a predominately rural area, or which is located on a property which fronts on an unpaved road; or
f. 
Circumstances similar to the above which the Planning Board finds appropriate.
[Ord. No. 39-1998, § 5.9, 12-1-1998]
Each loading bay shall have minimum dimensions of 50 feet by 14 feet and be located either within a building or outside and adjoining an opening in the building, except that, in the case of hospitals, nursing homes and convalescent homes, the off-street loading area provided for ambulances and other emergency vehicles shall be exempt from the minimum dimension requirement but shall be of sufficient width and depth to permit safe and convenient access and egress from the loading area. Every part of such loading bay shall be located completely off the street. In any case where trucks, trailers, or other motor vehicles larger than the dimensions of the minimum loading bay habitually serve the building in question, additional space shall be provided so that each vehicle shall park or stand completely off the street.