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Home My WebLink AboutSEVEN OAKS ACADEMY'S LITTLE ACORNS - PDP - 48-01 - SUBMITTAL DOCUMENTS - ROUND 1 - TRAFFIC STUDY�F� LEGEND: = Bus Stop On —Street Bike Lane Sidewalk Approximate Scale Scale: /'=2W etooth Rd. Figure G Alternative Model Existing Condition December, 2001 Seven Oaks Academy (LSC #011490) 1,124 g ii•� 46 1.416 11 i5 23 5U J28 51 0 22J (_J29 1 1 467 FL 0 38 21� � a 1 16 1,252 18 1.298 Appmxlmete Scale Richmond Dr. POtt, 1*.V N 0 9W.HorsetoothRd. 3 1 nP/ SITE (4 359 15 0 25 N�53 130 48 57 I L43 21 N L328 179 886 25J r + �32 250 - i �B4 502484 f-411 Q7 1355 7 3 B1238th Rd. Figure 5 LEGEND: Year 2001 26 _ AM Peak —Hour Traffic Total Traffic 31 PM Peak —Hour Traffic December, 2001 Seven Oaks Academy (LSC #011490) kw LEGEND: 2e AM Peak —Hour Traffic __ 31 PM Peak —Hour Traffic Approximate Scale Scale: /'-27Cf Figure 4 Assignment of Site -Generated Traffic December, 2001 Seven Oaks Academy (LSC #011490) N ya I,i, R LEGEND: = Traffic Signal f = Stop Sign 35 = Speed Limit 26 _ AM Peak —Hour Traffic 31 PM Peak —Hour Traffic Approximate Scale Scale. I'-2W W. Horsetooth Rd. Figure 3 Existing Traffic, Traffic Control and Lane Geometry December, 2001 Seven Oaks Academy (LSC #011490) . Appmxlmate Scale Scale: Richmond Dr. 1041, N Ps eon SITE L N N i W. Horsetooth Rd. Figure 2 Site Location December, 2001 Seven Oaks Academy (LSC #011490) 'ximate Scale le. I'- 5w Vicinity Map December, 2001 Seven Oaks Academy (LSC #011490) Mr. Larry Neal Page 6 December 12, 2001 If there are any questions concerning this analysis, please contact me. Respectfully submitted, LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. By: ux Dave L. Rubl Jr., P.E. DLR/wc Attachments: Figures 1-6 Traffic Counts Intersection Capacity Analyses Pedestrian LOS Worksheets Bicycle LOS Worksheet Public Transit LOS Worksheet \\Server\d\LSC\Projects\2001\011490\Report\F-SEOA.wpd p0 Rfi�,� j L Hli® ,0,A�� 13428 Mr. Larry Neal Page 5 December 12, 2001 speed limit) for South Shields Street and Prospect, the auto travel time is about 6.2 minutes. If the average peak -hour speed on Meridan is about 12 mph, the auto travel time is about 2.0 minutes, if one assumes it would take about five minutes to park the car and walk to the transit center. The total auto travel time is 13 minutes which yields a travel time factor of 1.76 which is less than the standard. Peak Load Factor: The peak load factor for Route 6 is less than the standard of 1.2 which means this standard is being met. This was determined by examining some of the buses on the route to during the peak -hour. The proposed day care center meets three of the four level of service standards. Since the proposed development is within 1,320 feet of a transit route, the public transit LOS is considered to LOS B. Regardless of whether the proposed day care center in located in a mixed use center or not, the proposed Seven Oaks Academy day care center meets the public transit LOS standard today. Conclusions The following points summarize the results of the analyses: 1. When completed the proposed Seven Oaks Academy day care center will be able to handle 48 children. Based on ITE Traffic Generation rates, the proposed day care center is expected to generate approximately 217 additional daily vehicle -trips. Of this total, approximately 39 trips will occur in the morning peak -hour and 41 trips in the evening peak -hour. 2. The directional distribution will be equally split between each direction with 25 percent coming from the north, south, east, and west. 3. Three intersections were analyzed in this report -- South Shields Street/Richmond Drive, Horsetooth Road/ Richmond Drive, and Horsetooth Road/ South Shields Street. Only the intersection of Richmond Drive and South Shields Street is going to experience a problem. This problem exists with the traffic from the proposed day care center. This intersection does not meet traffic signal warrants. However, the City of Fort Collins has not adopted standards for an unsignalized collector/arterial intersection. 4. Pedestrian, bicycle, and public transit Level of Service analyses were performed for the proposed Seven Oaks Academy day care center. All of the standards established by the City of Fort Collins are met. 5. The traffic impacts from the proposed day care center are minor and can be easily handled by the existing roadway system. Mr. Larry Neal Page 4 December 12, 2001 Pedestrian Mode: Two destination areas apply to the proposed day care center -- transit corridor and school walking area. Three destination area classification also apply -- residential, office, and commercial. Sidewalks exists along most of the roadways serving the site as well as within the site. Sidewalks do not exist on either side the roadway located directly east of the site. The Pedestrian LOS Worksheet was completed for both the transit corridor and school walking area for the three destination areas. In every case the actual LOS exceeded the minimum LOS (as recommended by the City of Fort Collins) for all five LOS categories -- direct- ness, connectivity, street crossings, visual interest & amenities, and security. Attached to this report are the completed forms. Bicycle Mode: One destination area applies to the proposed day care center -- community and neighborhood center. Three destination area classification also apply -- residential, office, and commercial. As can be seen in Figure 6, on -street bike lanes exist on both sides of South Shields Street and Horsetooth Road. The Bicycle LOS Worksheet was completed for the community and neighborhood center destination area. In every case the actual LOS exceeded the minimum LOS (as recommended by the City of Fort Collins). Attached to this report is the completed form. Public Transit Mode: Four service level standards have been established by the City of Fort Collins -- hours of weekday service, weekday frequency of service, travel time factor, and peak load factor. For mixed -use centers and commercial corridors the minimum Level of Service for adequacy is LOS "B" and for the remainder of Fort Collins, the Level of Service standard is LOS "D". • Hours of Service: Route 6 directly services the proposed day care center development. The service for this route begins at 6:17 AM and ends at 6:17 PM in one direction (from Foothills Fashion Mall to the CSU Transit Center), and in the other direction (CSU Transit Center to Foothills Fashion Mall) the service begins at 7:07 AM to 12:07 AM. In addition, Nightlite route also provides service to the proposed day care center development. The service for this route begins at 7:31 PM and ends at 2:31 AM. Based on the service levels for these routes, the proposed development meets the hours of weekday service standard. • Weekday Frequency of Service: Route 6 provides hourly service in each direction. At the proposed development, the frequency of service is approximately 50 minutes. The westbound service begins at 6:17 AM and continues every hour after that until 6:17 PM when the service ends, while the eastbound service begins at 7:07 AM and continues every hour after that until 12:07 AM. The Nightlite service begins at 7:31 PM and continues every hour after that until 2:31 AM when the service ends. The frequency standard is 15 minutes for mixed use centers and 20 minutes for the remainder of the service area. In either case, the proposed day care center develop- ment does not meet this standard. • Travel Time Factor: Route 6 delivers the bus rider from the intersection of South Shields Street and Horsetooth Road to the CSU Transit Center in 23 minutes. Assuming the average peak -hour speed of about 24 mph (60 percent of the posted Mr. Larry Neal Page 3 December 12, 2001 Traffic Impacts The traffic impacts of the proposed Seven Oaks Academy day care center can be described by evaluating the resulting Levels of Service (LOS) at the intersections that will be directly affected by the proposed day care center. Intersection capacities have been analyzed in accordance with the requirements of the 2000 Highway Capacity Manual (HCM), using the "operations" methodology. Traffic volumes used in these analyses include those from Figures 3 and 5. The concept of Level of Service (LOS) is used as a basis for computing combinations of roadway operating conditions. By definition, six different Levels of Service are used (A, B, C, D, E, and F) with "A" being a relatively free -flow condition and "E" representing the "capacity" of a given intersection or traffic movement. The complete analysis reports are attached to this report. South Shields Street/ Horsetooth Road; This intersection is controlled by a traffic signal. With- out the traffic from the proposed day care center, this signalized intersection operates at a good Level of Service (LOS "C") in the morning and evening peak -hours. When the traffic from the proposed day care center is added to the existing background traffic volumes, this inter- section is expected to continue to operate at a good Level of Service (LOS "C") in the morning and evening peak -hours. South Shields Street/Richmond Drive: This intersection has Stop control on Richmond Drive. Without the traffic from the proposed development, the northbound and southbound left -turns operate at a very good Level of Service (LOS `B") in the morning and evening peak -hours. Both the eastbound and westbound approaches operate at a poor Level of Service (LOS "F") in the morning and evening peak -hours. When the traffic from the proposed day care center is added to the existing background traffic volumes, the performance of this unsignalized intersection does not change. The approach peak -hour traffic volumes do not meet the warrants for a traffic signal. The City of Fort Collins does not include acceptable performance levels of the intersection of an arterial and collector roadway. Therefore, no mitigation measures are offered to alleviate the poor performance of the eastbound and westbound approaches. Horsetooth Road/Richmond Drive: This intersection has Stop control on Richmond Drive. Without the traffic from the proposed development, all of the critical traffic movements at this intersection operate at an acceptable Level of Service (LOS "D" or better) in the morning and evening peak -hours. When the traffic from the proposed day care center is added to the existing background traffic volumes, the performance of this unsignalized intersection does not change. Alternative Modal Analysis An analysis was performed for pedestrian, bicycle, and mass transit. The methodology contained in the City of Fort Collins Multimodal Transportation Level of Service Manual dated March 28, 1997 is being used to complete this analysis. An inventory was conducted of the alternative mode facilities in and around the proposed day care center. Figure 6 depicts what this inventory observed. Mr. Larry Neal Page 2 December 12, 2001 through lanes in each direction. Richmond Drive is a collector roadway that begins on the east at South Shields Street and goes in a west and southerly direction until it reaches Horsetooth Road. At Horsetooth Road it continues south where it ends approximately 1 /4 of a mile south of Horsetooth Road. This roadway consists of two lanes. It is controlled by Stop signs at both South Shields Street and Horsetooth Road. Morning and evening peak -hour traffic counts were collected at three intersections -- South Shields Street/Richmond Drive, South Shields Street/Horsetooth Road, and Horsetooth Road/ Richmond Drive. These traffic counts were collected in November 2001. Figure 3 depicts these traffic counts which are attached to this report. Site -Generated Traffic The Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) publishes traffic generation rates for various land use activities. In the case of a day care center, the ITE traffic generation rate is based on the maximum number of children at the proposed facility. The proposed day care center will have a maximum capacity of 48 children. The table below presents the number of morning and evening peak -hour trips that the proposed development is expected to generate. Approximately 39 trips will occur in the morning peak -hour with 21 entering and 18 leaving. In the evening peak -hour, the proposed day care center is expected to generate 41 vehicle -trips with 19 entering and 22 leaving the site. Morning Evening Land Use Category Peak -Hour Peak -Hour In Out In Out Day Care Center (48 children) 21 18 19 22 Traffic Generation Rate 0.43 0.38 0.40 0.46 Traffic Distribution Based on the traffic counts contained in Figure 3, it was assumed that 25 percent of the traffic visiting the proposed day care center would come from the south, west, north and east. Based on this distribution of the traffic generation depicted in the above table, Figure 4 depicts the assignment of site -generated traffic for the proposed day care center. When the site -generated traffic is added to the existing peak -hour traffic volumes, an estimate is arrived at for the total morning and evening peak -hour traffic volumes. Figure 5 depicts these traffic volumes. These are arrived at by adding the site -generated traffic in Figure 4 to the existing background traffic volumes in Figure 3. LSC TRANSPORTATION CONSULTANTS, INC. 1889 York Street Denver, CO 80206 (303)333-1105 FAX (303) 333-1107 E-mail: Isc@lscden.com Web Site: http://www.Iscden.com December 12, 2001 Mr. Larry Neal Seven Oaks Academy 3513 Richmond Drive Fort Collins, CO 80526 Re: Seven Oaks Academy Fort Collins, Colorado (LSC #011490) Dear Mr. Neal: LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. has completed the assessment of the impacts due to the proposed Seven Oaks Academy day care center which is to be located in the City of Fort Collins, Colorado. Our assessment involved analyzing the existing traffic condition with and without the proposed development as well as a multi -modal transportation Level of Service analysis. This approach was verified with staff from the City of Fort Collins. Background The proposed day care center is to be located near the intersection of South Shield Street and Horsetooth Road. The site is bounded by Horsetooth Road on the south, Richmond Drive on the west and north and South Shields Street on the east. The proposed facility will have a maximum capacity of 48 children. Figure 1 is a vicinity map showing the location of the site with respect to the surrounding land use activities. Figure 2 depicts the location of the site with respect the surrounding roadway system serving the site. Existing Conditions The major roadways serving this site are South Shields Street, Horsetooth Road, and Rich- mond Drive. Horsetooth Road is a major east/west arterial. It begins on the west at Taft Hill Road and continues easterly until it leaves the City of Fort Collins where it becomes Larimer County Road 40. This roadway ends at Larimer County Road 7. Near the site, this roadway has two lanes west of South Shields Street and four lanes east of South Shields Street. The intersection with South Shields Street is controlled by a traffic signal. South Shield Street is a major north/south arterial. It begins in the City of Loveland as Taft Street. When this road- way enters Larimer County is becomes Larimer County Road 17. When this roadway enters Fort Collins it becomes South Shields Street. This roadway continues in a northerly direction until it reaches Larimer County Road 56 where it ends. Near the site, this roadway has two