[Ord. 974, 3/14/2001,
§ 11720]
The purpose of this Part is to regulate location, construction,
maintenance and drainage of access driveways, local roads and other
property within the right-of-ways of Borough streets for the purpose
of security, safety and reasonable access, preservation of existing
street operating capacity and condition, preservation of surrounding
land uses, provision of adequate drainage and economy of maintenance.
[Ord. 974, 3/14/2001,
§ 11721; as amended by Ord. 995, 12/10/2003]
For the purposes of this Part, these terms shall be defined
as follows:
ACCESS
Any driveway, street or other means of passage of vehicles
between the highway and abutting property, including acceleration
and deceleration lanes and such drainage structures as may be necessary
for the proper construction and maintenance thereof.
CURBLINE
A line formed by the face of the existing curb or in its
absence the outer edge of the shoulder, along which curbing is or
may be located.
DRIVEWAY
Every entrance or exit used by vehicular traffic to or from
properties abutting or connecting a public street. The term includes
proposed streets, lanes, alleys, courts and ways.
DRIVEWAY WIDTH
The narrowest width of a driveway measured perpendicular
to the center line of the driveway.
EGRESS
The exit of vehicular traffic from abutting properties to
a highway.
FORM 408
The latest revision of highway construction specifications
issued by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.
FRONTAGE WIDTH
The distance along the right-of-way line in front of an abutting
property.
IMPROVED AREA
The area within the right-of-way which has been constructed
for highway purposes including roadbed, pavement, shoulders, slope,
sidewalks, drainage facilities and any other appurtenances.
INGRESS
Entrance of vehicular traffic to abutting properties from
a highway.
JOINT-USE DRIVEWAY
A driveway shared by and constructed to provide access to
two or more properties.
OWN
To hold title to land or a building or be a tenant in a lease
that will not terminate within 15 years of the permit issuance date.
PAVEMENT EDGE
The edge of the main traveled portion of any highway, exclusive
of shoulder.
PERMANENT CURBING
Plain or reinforced cement concrete curb which meets Department
standards.
PERMIT
A street access permit issued by the Borough of Aspinwall
pursuant to this Part.
PLANS
Drawings which show the location, character, and dimensions
of the proposed occupancy and related highway features, including
layouts, profiles, cross sections, drainage and other details.
RIGHT-OF-WAY
The area which has been acquired by the Borough of Aspinwall
for street purposes.
ROADWAY
That portion of a street improved, designed or ordinarily
used for vehicular travel, exclusive of the sidewalk or shoulder.
SETBACK
The lateral distance between the right-of-way line and the
roadside building, liquid fuel pump island, display stand, or other
object, which will result in space for vehicles to stop or park between
such objects and the right-of-way line.
SHOULDER
The portion of the roadway, contiguous to the traffic lanes,
for accommodation of stopped vehicles, for emergency use, and for
lateral support of base and surface courses and pavements.
SHOULDER LINE
The intersection of the shoulder slope with the side slope
or ditch slope.
SIGHT DISTANCE
The distance required by a driver traveling at a given speed
to stop the vehicle after an object on the roadway becomes visible
to the driver.
STREET
The area, including the entire width between right-of-way
lines, over which the Borough has assumed or has been given jurisdiction.
TRAFFIC CONTROL DEVICE
Any sign, signal, marking or device placed or erected for
the purpose of regulating, warning or guiding vehicular traffic or
pedestrians, or both.
TURNING RADIUS
The radius of an arc which approximates the turning path
of the exterior corner of a vehicle.
VEHICLE
Every device in or by which any person or property is or
may be transported or drawn upon a highway. The term includes special
mobile equipment as defined in the Pennsylvania Vehicle Code.
[Ord. 974, 3/14/2001,
§ 11722; as amended by Ord. 995, 12/10/2003; and by Ord. 1025, 12/19/2007, § 1]
1. Without first obtaining a street access permit from the Borough:
(a) No driveway, local street or drainage facility or structure shall
be constructed or altered within a Borough street right-of-way; (b)
No property abutting or having ingress or egress via a Borough public
street shall change its use or increase its daily peak traffic to
a Borough street; (c) No drainage facility of the Borough shall be
altered or a connection made thereto without first obtaining a permit
from the Borough.
2. The applicant shall submit permit application in writing to the Borough
Manager in the form prescribed by this Part. The permit application
shall be signed by property owner and accompanied by proof of ownership.
3. The application shall include plans detailing location and pertinent dimensions of proposed installation and existing street features and drainage control plans as required by §
21-304. The permit fee, in an amount as established from time to time by resolution of Borough Council, shall be submitted with the application.
4. Borough Council shall review all applications and plans for street
or road construction which would adjoin or connect with any street
within the boundaries of the Borough. Council may appoint a committee
to review all plans for residential driveways which will adjoin onto
any street or way within the Borough of Aspinwall. Said committee
shall be comprised of three members of Council and the Borough Manager.
Borough Council shall approve, approve with modification or deny an
application for a street access permit.
5. Subdivision and/or land development plan approval by the Borough Council under the Borough Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance [Chapter
22] shall operate as a street access permit approval under this section provided that: (a) the subdivision and/or land development plan complies with the requirements of this chapter; (b) the applicant applies for and obtains a zoning use permit and a zoning occupancy permit from the Zoning Officer under the Borough Zoning Ordinance [Chapter
27]; and (c) the applicant complies with any and all conditions of approval of the subdivision and/or land development plan approval imposed by the Borough Council in accordance with the Borough Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance [Chapter
22].
[Ord. 974, 3/14/2001,
§ 11723; as amended by Ord. 1025, 12/19/2007, § 2]
1. The applicant for a street access permit is responsible for submitting four sets of plans with the permit application which contain the following, except as provided in Subsection
2 below:
A. Traffic control plan if it is necessary to close a lane to vehicular
traffic in order to perform the permitted work.
B. Drainage control plan required if, as result of action of applicant,
there will be an increase in the flow of water onto the street or
into a street drainage facility. The plan must include: source of
water, existing and proposed flow (cfs), existing and proposed drainage
pattern and hydraulic computations demonstrating adequate capacity
in the drainage system to accept the additional flow.
C. Driveway access plan showing:
(1)
Driveway width, radii and other points of curvature, grades
or profile view of drive, angle relative to the street and surface
material.
(2)
Dimensions of any traffic islands/dividers to separate traffic
flow.
(3)
Distance from proposed driveway to: nearest intersecting streets,
roads or highways; nearest driveway on adjacent properties (both sides
of street); streets, driveways opposite site; adjacent land uses;
any traffic control devices.
(4)
Sight distance in each direction from proposed driveway.
(5)
Number of vehicles per day expected to use driveway.
2. An applicant applying for a street access permit for a property containing one single-family residential dwelling (as defined by the Borough Zoning Ordinance [Chapter
27]) is only responsible for submitting an application form and one set of driveway access plans (professional drawings not required) showing:
A. Driveway width, radii and other points of curvature.
B. Distance from proposed driveway to: nearest intersecting streets,
roads or highways; nearest driveway on adjacent properties (both sides
of the street); streets, driveways opposite site; adjacent land uses.
C. Sight distance in each direction from proposed driveway.
D. Number of vehicles per day expected to use driveway.
[Ord. 974, 3/14/2001,
§ 11724]
1. No driveway or road entering upon a Borough street or way will be
approved unless all of the following conditions are met:
A. General. The driveway must have safe sight distance, not impair normal
street movement, not result in excessive traffic flow or congestion
on Borough streets and not create a hazard.
B. Location. The following standards shall apply:
(1)
Driveway should access onto streets of type and character to
handle the type and amount of vehicular traffic using the driveway.
Driveways from nonresidential uses normally used by more than 60 vehicles
per day shall not be permitted access onto local residential streets.
The Borough Council may approve an exception to this standard based
on special site conditions and traffic studies showing no negative
impact on the existing residential street. For purposes of this section,
a residential street is one on which 50% or more of the abutting properties
are single or multifamily residences.
(2)
Driveway shall not be located at highway interchanges or ramp
areas so as to interfere with proper functioning. Any driveway or
street carrying more than 60 vehicles per day shall not be located
within 100 yards of any interchange or ramp access area of a state
highway or county road.
(3)
If the driveway is near a signalized intersection, the permittee
shall be required to pay costs of any modifications to the signals
which are necessary to control traffic movements from the driveway.
(4)
If the property is a corner lot, the Borough may restrict access
to only one street.
(5)
The Borough may require permittee to locate the driveway directly
across from street or driveway in order to avoid any safety hazard.
C. Number. Normally Borough Council will approve only one access for
a property.
D. Approach. The location and angle of access of driveway in relation
to street intersection shall be such that a vehicle entering or leaving
driveway can do so in orderly and safe manner and with minimum interference
to street traffic.
E. Design Guidelines. The applicable requirements for "minimum" and
"low volume" driveways found in PennDOT Regulations, 67 Pa. Code § 1.8,
shall apply unless otherwise specified by the provisions of this Part.
These requirements may be modified by the Borough to accommodate specific
site or street conditions in order to protect the safety and traffic
capacity of Borough streets.
F. New or Modified Streets. New or modified streets and intersections, including, but not limited to, those requiring a traffic study pursuant to §
21-306, shall be designed for adequate traffic capacity defined as follows, unless otherwise approved by the Borough Engineer. All reference to levels of service (LOS) shall be as defined in the Highway Capacity Manual, Special Report 209, published by the Transportation Research Board.
(1)
Traffic capacity LOS shall be based upon a future design year
which coincides with completion of the development and PennDOT requirements.
(2)
New unsignalized intersection or driveways which intersect streets
shall be designed for LOS C or better for each traffic movement
(3)
New or modified (additional approach created) signalized intersections
shall be designed for LOS C or better for each traffic movement.
(4)
Existing intersections impacted by development traffic shall
maintain a minimum LOS C for each traffic movement.
(5)
Sight distance at driveways and new intersections shall meet
standards specified by PennDOT regulations.
[Ord. 974, 3/14/2001,
§ 11725]
1. In the event the proposed driveway or road connecting with any Borough
street or way will produce a traffic flow in excess of 60 vehicles
per day, the Borough may order a traffic study to be prepared by its
engineers, the expense of which is to be borne by the applicant and
paid before review of the submitted plans.
2. The Borough will provide a scope of study specifying the study area,
intersections and any special requirements. Prior to initiation of
the study, a meeting shall be held to review the scope of work. PennDOT
may be invited to the meeting where appropriate. The study shall include
the following:
A. Description of the proposed project in terms of land use and magnitude.
B. An inventory an analysis of existing roadway and traffic conditions
in the site environs, including:
(1)
Roadway network and traffic control.
(2)
Existing traffic volumes in terms of peak hours and average
daily traffic (ADT), where specifically requested.
(3)
Planned roadway improvements by others.
(4)
Intersection levels of service.
(5)
Roadway levels of service (where requested).
(6)
Other measures of roadway adequacy; i.e., lane-widths, traffic
signal warrants and vehicle delay studies.
C. Projected site-generated traffic volumes in terms of:
(1)
Peak hours and ADT (by phase if required).
(2)
Approach/departure distribution including method of determination.
This must be approved prior to performing future traffic analyses.
(3)
Site traffic volumes in roadway.
D. An analysis of future traffic conditions, with and without the proposed
development, including:
(1)
Future design year, or years with phasing, combined traffic
volumes (site traffic plus future roadway traffic). If the study is
required for PennDOT review, the future design year shall be consistent
with PennDOT requirements.
(2)
Intersection levels of service.
(3)
Roadway levels of service (where appropriate).
(4)
A pavement analysis of roadways which are projected to experience
significant increased in ADT volumes (where appropriate).
(5)
Other measures of roadway adequacy, i.e., lane-width; traffic
signal warrants and vehicle delay studies.
E. A description of future levels of service and their compliance with
standards for traffic capacity of streets, intersections and driveways.
F. A description and analysis of the proposed access plan and site plan.
(1)
On-site circulation plan showing parking locations and dimension,
loading access, circulation plan showing parking locations and dimension,
loading access, circulation roadway and traffic control.
(2)
Driveway access plan showing location of driveways and new intersections
including geometric conditions and traffic control.
[Ord. 974, 3/14/2001,
§ 11726]
No driveway or street carrying a traffic flow of 60 vehicles
per day or more shall enter a street within 300 feet of the intersection
of any other street or driveway which carries the same or greater
traffic flow.
[Ord. 974, 3/14/2001 § 11727;
as added by Ord. 995, 12/10/2003]
1. Any person, firm or corporation who violates a provision of this
Part, or who fails to comply therewith, or with any of the requirements
thereof, shall be, upon conviction thereof, sentenced to pay a fine
of not less than $300 nor more than $1,000 for each violation, plus
costs, and in default of payment of said fine and costs, to imprisonment
to the extent permitted by law for the punishment of summary offenses.
2. A separate offense shall arise for each day or portion thereof in
which a violation is found to exist or for each section of this Part
found to have been violated. All fines and penalties for the violation
of this Part shall be paid to the Borough Treasurer.
3. The Borough may also commence appropriate actions in equity or other
to prevent, restrain, correct, enjoin, or abate violations of this
Part.