A number of major and minor collector roads
set forth in the Circulation Element to the West Windsor Township
Master Plan run through existing residential developments or residential
developments which are expected to be built in the Township. Many
of these roads are already complete. Because of the cartway widths
and radii, tangents and other design features of these roads, vehicular
traffic may and often does travel at higher than the posted speed
and at speeds which represent a danger to pedestrians as well as to
other motorists. This is particularly so because many children and
other pedestrians live, work and play in close proximity to the roads
and must often cross them, since they bisect residential neighborhoods.
Given this, it is necessary for reasons of public safety to reduce
vehicular speed by building friction into the roadway system through
limiting these roads to two lanes, limiting cartway widths, providing
for medians and bicycle lanes and designating paved areas which are
not in use, all of which will reduce cartway widths and establishing
marked crosswalks and constructing pedestrian-activated signals. It
is also necessary for public safety reasons to provide better means
of pedestrian crossings of these roadways and turning lanes to handle
turning movements. Two-lane roadways with landscaped medians, with
bicycle lanes and with enhanced pedestrian crossings will also protect
the integrity of established neighborhoods, prevent the division of
existing and new neighborhoods by requiring collector roads to be
designed so as not to act as physical barriers and maintain and preserve
property values.
The design standards set forth in §
200-97 shall apply to all major and minor collector roads so designated in the Circulation Plan Element to the Master Plan of West Windsor Township included in all applications for development, including those for which final approval has been granted but building permits have not been issued as of the effective date of this Part
3 to the maximum extent permitted by law, except that the standards set forth in §
200-98 shall apply if the collector road is an existing road. No building permits shall be issued after the effective date of this Part
3 for any development, the approved development application for which contains such a roadway, until the developer submits a roadway design conforming to such standards and a construction schedule, both of which are acceptable to the Township Council, and executes a developer's agreement providing for the same approved by the Township Council, as the case may be. The standards set forth in §§
200-97 and
200-98 shall also apply when a property owner or developer has agreed to be bound thereby or as otherwise permitted by law. Public entities building or improving collector roads shall follow the design standards set forth in §§
200-97 and
200-98 respectively to the extent that funding permits.
Major and minor collector roads as designated
in the Circulation Plan Element to the Master Plan of West Windsor
Township shall be designed in accordance with the following standards:
A. Number of travel lanes. Two travel lanes shall be
provided, one in each direction, and cartway not used for travel,
turning or bicycle lanes shall be suitably marked so as to indicate
that it is not in use.
B. Cartway widths. The cartway width shall be 50 feet, except that the width shall be varied therefrom to the extent necessary to assure safety and adequate space for turning movements and to assure a design in accordance with Intersection Details A, B and C included in Subsection
G of this section.
C. Medians and turning lanes. Permanent raised curbed medians shall be provided for the full length of the collector road which is part of the application for development, except that gaps of sufficient width for turning movements for emergency vehicles shall be provided in proximity to fire hydrants, but no less than every 800 feet. However, no such gap shall be provided for fire hydrants within 250 feet of the intersection. They shall be landscaped with trees, shrubs and ground cover in a manner consistent with sound landscape architecture principles, shall not interfere with applicable sight distances and shall be acceptable to the board of jurisdiction. The narrow tip of the island surrounding the crosswalk shall be concrete. Turning lanes and other median elements shall be designed in the manner set forth in Intersection Details A, B and C included in Subsection
G of this section, except that the medians shall extend from intersection to intersection.
D. Curbing. All cartways and medians shall be curbed in the manner set forth in §
200-58 of Part
2 of this chapter, except that they shall be mountable in the continuation of the medians between those portions shown in Intersection Details A, B, and C included in Subsection
G.
E. Pedestrian crosswalks. Suitably marked pedestrian
crossings shall be provided at each intersection and shall be located
so as to provide a safe landing area on the median. Where intersections
are to be signalized at the time the development is built out or in
the future, such signals shall include a pedestrian-activated crossing
control. Signage controls shall be installed for intersections which
do not have signals.
F. Bicycle lanes. Six-foot-wide bicycle lanes with appropriate signage and markings shall be provided on both sides of the roadway. They shall be separated from the cartway if the board of jurisdiction determines that separating them from the cartway is preferable for safety and site design reasons. The intersection treatment for bicycle lanes which are not separated from the cartway shall be as set forth in the Intersection Details A, B and C included in Subsection
G.
When the collector road to which the design standards apply is in existence, the standards set forth in §
200-97 shall apply, except that:
A. Raised and curbed medians shall be located on each side of vehicular intersections for 200 feet to 250 feet, depending upon intersection spacing and drainage considerations, in the manner set forth in Intersection Details A, B and C, included in §
200-97G, and at pedestrian and bicycle path intersections, but need not extend from one intersection to the next. In lieu of a continuous median between intersections and until their further installation under the auspices of a public entity in conformance with §
200-97, the pavement between the raised medians shall be striped in order to continue the median design theme.
B. The median and turning lane designs set forth in Intersection Details A, B and C included in §
200-97G shall be followed, except that they may be modified to the extent necessary in light of right-of-way and pavement widths and other existing conditions.
C. The median islands on both sides of the intersection
shall include at least three holes punched through the existing pavement
to the soil beneath to accommodate shade trees and shall include suitable
shrubbery and ground cover in accordance with sound landscape architectural
principals.
D. Bicycle lanes shall be provided on existing cartway
if the cartway is of a sufficient width therefor. Bicycle lanes separated
from the cartway need not be provided. The bicycle lane widths may
be reduced to five feet and one bicycle lane may be eliminated to
the extent that it is necessary to do so in order to accommodate the
bicycle lane within the existing cartway. Bicycle lanes shall be marked
by striping or other means as the board of jurisdiction determines
most effectively enhances bicyclist safety.