Applying Access Management Across the Transect

• Authored by:  Brad K. Strader

Presentation Strader, Brad. “Applying Access Management Across the Transect: Complete Streets,” Proceedings of the 90th Annual Meeting of the Transportation Research Board (presentation only), (January 2011) This presentation suggests a simpler adaptation of the CSS transect framework in ITE’s Designing Walkable Thoroughfares (2010) as a means of organizing access management strategies according to context. It also offers several case examples of these applications in typical rural, suburban and urban contexts. Figure 2 illustrates the overall concept. • Rural corridors: emphasize planning strategies aimed at addressing location for future signals and access, more effective land use planning, identification and preservation of future right of way, and supporting regulatory strategies, such as minimum lot frontage, lot split controls, and limitations on access per parent parcel or business. • Emerging suburban areas: emphasize preventative strategies including future signal spacing coordinated with well-spaced shared access systems, connected street networks to relieve arterials, better integration of collectors streets, non-motorized networks and crossing, and land use activity nodes rather than continuous strips. • Developed suburban areas: emphasize retrofit strategies, such as access plans to guide future access, correcting worst conditions (near signals, crash concentrations, poor offsets), promoting shared access systems, integrating medians, pedestrian and transit oriented development, directing bikes to lower speed parallel routes. • Urban areas: emphasize system performance for overall mobility, such as reducing the existing number of driveways, removing access from main street frontages, lowering target speeds, and increased emphasis on pedestrian, and bicycle (multimodal) level of service.