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As Facilitated and Recorded by Walkable Communities, Inc.
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Gregory J. McCormick
AICP, Director of Community Development.
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There are two types of highway design: a. Old style highways. Old style highways typically include road pavement, curb and gutter. Drainage is often underground and may include sidewalks at the back of curb and center turn lanes. Trees and poles are set back from the curb so they are not hit by vehicles that turn off the road. However, pedestrians are at a high risk because there is no buffer between the road and walkway. Continuous center turn lanes are no longer used in some areas because of their high accident rate for both vehicles and pedestrians. An old style highway is a safer and more convenient road for all users than a rural road, but is not as safe as a boulevard or new style designs described below. b. New style highways. New style highways include asphalt for the required number of lanes, curb and gutter, a raised landscaped median, nature or landscaped strips with street trees between sidewalks at the curb. They may also include bicycle lanes and on-street parking. New style highways are the safest types of road design, especially when crossing facilities are provided for pedestrians at appropriate locations. 3. Historic Style Historic style roads include boulevards and avenues that feature three or four rows of trees, medians, travel lanes, curb and gutter, wide nature or landscape strips, and wide sidewalks with bicycle lanes and on-street parking where possible. This is the most beautiful and user friendly of all road designs, especially if coupled with roundabouts as the preferred traffic control option. Street Design Options This section discusses the various designs available for local streets, which typically serve residential or commercial areas. Rural Rural streets are the cheapest forms of construction, since they only need to include asphalt for vehicles, ditches for drainage, and tree clearing. Rural streets, like rural highways, typically encourage high travel speeds. Rural streets are uninviting for pedestrians and bicyclists; indeed, this is the most dangerous type of local street for all users. |
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