Driveway or other facilities for access to lots shall be designed, constructed, upgraded, reconstructed or repaired according to the standards of this section. Driveways shall be permitted only upon streets where full street improvements exist and are maintained as a public street by the City; provided, however, that low volume (residential) driveways may be permitted on public lanes, alleys or other accepted public access facilities in existence prior to adoption of this document.
802.1 Location and Construction of Driveways.
The location of driveways is based on a number of factors, including the location of individual property lines and available street frontage, requirements or internal site design, number of vehicles to be accommodated and traffic safety. As a general rule, the farther from an intersection a driveway can be located, the less it will affect the through traffic and the less delay it will cause to vehicles using the driveway.
a. High volume driveway approaches shall be located entirely within the frontage of the lot and not less than ten feet (10') from any side property line; provided, however, joint driveway approaches may be permitted where a permanent joint access is provided by the respective property owners either through platting or a mutual access easement (see 802.1.g). Low volume (residential) driveway approaches shall be located entirely within the lot dimensions and not less than five feet (5') from any side or rear property line.
b. Location of other driveways shall be considered on the opposite side of the street when locating a proposed driveway. Where possible, driveways on both sides of the street shall be aligned in order to minimize adverse effects on through traffic and to optimize efficiencies of the driveway. Driveways directly opposite each other shall be given preference over staggered driveways. Where it is not possible to place driveways directly opposite each other, a driveway shall be placed so that adequate left turn storage capacity is provided in advance of each driveway in order to avoid the overlap of left turn movements.
c. Driveway approaches shall be constructed so as not to interfere with pedestrian crosswalks.
d. Driveways shall be constructed a minimum of three feet (3') from any obstruction such as a street light or utility pole, fire hydrant, traffic signal controller, telephone junction box, etc.
e. Low volume driveways (single-family residential) shall be constructed to conform to the criteria shown in Figure 8-2.
f. High volume driveways shall be constructed to conform to the criteria shown in Figure 8-3.
g. When the owner or owners of two (2) adjacent lots agree to permanently combine access points, the City shall grant an incentive bonus. The total lot width normally required will be reduced by fifteen percent (15%) for each lot. In addition, where the agreement also includes a permanent mutual parking agreement, the required number of parking spaces may be reduced by fifteen percent (15%) for each development.
h. The maximum number of driveways per lot, based on the street classification and lot width shall be as shown in Table 8-1, Maximum Driveways per Lot.
TABLE 8-1 |
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MAXIMUM DRIVEWAYS PER LOT |
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STREET TYPE | LOT WIDTH | PERMITTED DRIVEWAYS |
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Local | <100' | 1 |
| 101–200' | 2 |
| Over 200' | 1 per additional 100' |
Collector | <100' | 1 |
| 100–250' | 2 |
| Over 250' | 1 per additional 200' |
Arterial | <100' | 1 |
| 101–300' | 2 |
| Over 300' | 1 per additional 300' |
802.2 Driveway Spacing for High Volume Driveways.
High volume driveways shall be designed and constructed according to the spacing standards shown in Figure 8-4.
802.3 Driveway Design.
Driveway design will depend on the land use, the volume, the character of both through traffic and driveway traffic and the speed of traffic on the through street. Dependent upon these factors, the critical design elements include radii of curb returns, driveway throat width and the angle between the driveway centerline and the edge of the roadway.
a. Driveway entrances shall be designed to be able to accommodate all vehicle types having occasion to enter the lot, including delivery vehicles.
b. Driveways shall be designed with curb return radii according to the type of driveway and the classification of the street as provided in Table 8-2, Minimum Curb Return Radii.
TABLE 8-2 |
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MINIMUM CURB RETURN RADII (IN FEET) |
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STREET CLASSIFICATION | LOW VOLUME DRIVEWAY | HIGH VOLUME DRIVEWAY |
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Local | 5 | 10 |
Collector | 5 | 10 |
Arterial | 10 | 20 |
c. Tapered or channelized deceleration lanes for vehicles turning right into high volume or intersection type driveways may be required on arterial streets. Where such lanes are necessary, additional right-of-way may also be required.
d. The use of one-way driveways, supported by an appropriate internal circulation system, is encouraged so that entrances and exits can be separate driveways. This will promote smoother traffic flow into and out of the driveways and reduce traffic congestion in through lanes on the street.
e. In some cases, where necessary for the safe and efficient movement of traffic, the City may require that special design techniques be employed to restrict or limit turning movements into or out of a driveway before the driveway can be approved. Such restrictions do no affect the number and location of access points as specified elsewhere. Figure 8-5 gives approved minimum design criteria for limited movement driveways. Deceleration lanes may also be required to be incorporated into the design.
f. Driveway design standards for sites that include fuel pumps parallel to the adjacent street are necessary due to the special access needs that characterize such developments. Sites shall be designed for fuel pumps according to the following standards:
(1) The minimum corner clearance shall be a distance of thirty-five feet (35') measured from the point of intersection right-of-way lines to the point of tangency of the curb return radii leading to the driveway approach. The point of tangency of the curbline corner radius and that of the curb return radius of the driveway approach shall not be compounded.
(2) The minimum spacing between driveway approaches within the same property lines shall be twenty-five feet (25') of tangent curb length.
(3) A minimum distance between the fuel pump, island and the right-of-way or property line shall be twenty-five feet (25').
802.4 Restrictive Provisions.
Access to public streets will not be provided where the conditions described below restrict or compromise the safety and efficiency of the access.
a. Backing Maneuvers.
Access points shall not be approved for parking or loading areas that require backing maneuvers in a public street right-or-way except for single-family or duplex residential uses on local streets.
b. Sight Distance Requirements.
The minimum sight distance shall be provided at all access points as shown in Figure 8-6.
c. Signalized Intersections.
Access drives within the area of intersection of public streets where traffic signals are installed, or are anticipated to be installed in the future, will not be permitted.
d. Provision of Access.
If a lot has frontage on more than one (1) street, access will be permitted only on those street frontages where standards can be met. If a lot cannot be served by any access point meeting these standards, access point(s) shall be designated by the City based on traffic safety, operational needs and conformance to as much of the requirements or these guidelines as possible.
e. Driveway approaches shall not be constructed or used for the standing or parking of vehicles.
f. Driveway restrictions along expressway ramps;[:]
(1) If a driveway provides access to and from expressway frontage roads, it shall not intersect the frontage road at any point along the curbline of the frontage road, or along the edge of the pavement within 250 feet downstream from an exit ramp measured in the direction of traffic flow on the frontage road, Figure 8-7. This distance is measured from a line perpendicular to the right curbline of the frontage road, drawn through the point of intersection of the right curbline of an exit ramp and left curbline of the frontage road, and located to minimize danger by the crossing, weaving and merging of traffic.
(2) If a driveway provides access to and from expressway frontage roads, it shall not intersect the frontage road at any point along the curbline of the frontage road, or along the edge of pavement if there is no curbline, within fifty feet (50') upstream of an entrance ramp, Figure 8-7. This distance is measured on the frontage road upstream from a line perpendicular to the right curbline of the frontage road upstream from a line perpendicular to the right curbline of the frontage road, drown through the point of intersection of the right curbline of an entry ramp and the left curbline of the frontage road, and located to minimize danger created by the crossing, weaving and merging of traffic.
802.5 Driveway Construction.
a. The portion of the driveway approach within the street right-of-way shall be paved with concrete or asphalt as follows:
(1) Commercial, Multifamily or Industrial:
All pavement shall be concrete.
(2) Residential:
All driveway pavement abutting curb and gutter streets shall be concrete.
All driveway pavement abutting on non-curb and guttered streets may be concrete or asphalt.
b. Property owners developing multifamily, commercial or industrial driveways located on non-curbed and guttered streets are responsible for all culvert installations.
802.6 Abandoned Driveway Approaches.
Whenever the use of any driveway approach is abandoned and not used for ingress and/or egress to the property abutting, it shall be the duty of the property owner of such abutting property to restore the curb according to the City’s specifications.
(Ordinance 599 adopted 2/5/07)
