EFFECTS OF DESIGN CRITERIA ON LOCAL STREET SIGHT DISTANCE

Of the three roadway functional classes (arterial, collector, and local), the local road is the one intended to provide access. Local street design criteria interact to affect the available sight distance. Urban residential streets of the type often found in newer subdivisions tend not to be laid out in the traditional grid pattern, but rather in a more free-form pattern incorporating elements of discontinuity and curvilinear alignment. In these settings, on-street parking, whether on both sides of the street or only on one side, forces vehicles traveling in opposite directions to operate in the same lane. The presence of vegetation or other objects at the curbside can also limit the available head-on sight distance. Where two lanes of traffic moving in opposite directions operate in one lane, the amount of sight distance needed is greater than under normal conditions. The design needed is analogous to one that permits two locomotives to approach head-on on a single track and to stop before colliding. Roadway designers should recognize situations that require adequate head-on sight distance and provide a sight distance sufficient for the two approaching vehicles to react and stop before colliding.

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  • This paper appears in Transportation Research Record No. 1303, Geometric Design Considerations 1991. Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved
• Authors:
  • Gattis, J L
• Publication Date: 1991

Media Info

• Features: Figures; Photos; References; Tables;
• Pagination: p. 33-38
• Monograph Title: Geometric design considerations, 1991
• Serial:
  • Transportation Research Record
  • Issue Number: 1303
  • Publisher: Transportation Research Board
  • ISSN: 0361-1981

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Alignment; Design; Layout; On street parking; Sight distance; Single lane traffic; Streets
• Uncontrolled Terms: Design criteria
• Old TRIS Terms: Local street
• Subject Areas: Design; Highways; I20: Design and Planning of Transport Infrastructure;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00616587
• Record Type: Publication
• ISBN: 030905110X
• Files: TRIS, TRB, ATRI
• Created Date: Nov 30 1991 12:00AM