VI. CIRCULATION ELEMENT

Transcription

1 Township of Randolph Mastr Plan VI. ELEMENT Whr Lif Is Worth Living VI-1

2 Township of Randolph Mastr Plan VI. ELEMENT 1.0 INTRODUCTION Travl pattrns within Randolph Township rflct its location in th cntr of Morris County with significant lvls of commrcial and rsidntial dvlopmnt to th wst and to th ast. To dvlop rcommndations for futur improvmnts to th Randolph Township circulation systm, th xisting transportation systm must b rassssd. This assssmnt is accomplishd through an valuation and updat of information providd in th 1992 Mastr Plan rgarding th Township s roadway classifications, traffic volums, traffic safty problm aras and proposd roadway improvmnts. 2.0 ROADWAY CLASSIFICATIONS A functional systm of strts and highways provids a graduatd systm of traffic flow. Efficint and saf opration of th systm rquirs that spcific facilitis b dsignd to srv a spcific purpos within th strt hirarchy. Classification of roadways ar mad according to th movmnt srvd by that roadway and not according to traffic volums on th roadway. Th functional classifications with rspctiv dfinitions ar summarizd in Tabl VI-1. Th currnt Randolph Subdivision Ordinanc placs roadways in six classifications. Th classifications can b found in th Land Dvlopmnt Ordinanc (LDO) on Pag V:37. As a summary, roadway classifications within th LDO includ: Local, Sub Collctor, and Minor Collctor strts, Major Collctor, Minor Artrial, and Major Artrial. Nw Jrsy Stat Dpartmnt of Transportation (NJSDOT) has rcntly updatd th classification of roadways locatd throughout th stat. In som cass, roadways in th Randolph hav bn classifid by NJDOT diffrntly than th Township. Until such tim as this diffrnc is rsolvd, th Township s classification is th accptd class. Th Nw Jrsy Rsidntial Sit Improvmnt Standards (RSIS) also includ strt classifications, although thy only prtain to rsidntial strts. Rgardlss, thir classifications ar important to not hr bcaus of thir impact on th lvl of strt improvmnt rquird for rsidntial roadways. Whr Lif Is Worth Living VI-2

3 Township of Randolph Mastr Plan Tabl VI-1 FUNCTIONAL CLASSIFICATION OF ROADS Frway/Exprssway: Primary function is to srv through traffic and provid high spd mobility. Accss providd from major strts at intrchangs. Limitd or no accss to abutting land uss. Major Artrial: Intndd to provid a high dgr of mobility and srv longr trips than minor artrials. Principal function is movmnt, not accss. Should b xcludd from rsidntial aras. Minor Artrial: Intrconncts and augmnts th major artrial systm. Accommodats trips of shortr lngths. Oprating spds and srvic lvls ar lowr than major artrials. Should b xcludd from idntifiabl rsidntial nighborhoods. Collctor: Provids both land accss and movmnt within rsidntial, commrcial and industrial aras. Pntrat but should not continu through rsidntial aras. Major Collctor: Primary function is to collct and distribut traffic btwn local strts and th artrial systm. Minor Collctor: Primary function is to provid land accss. Sub Collctor: Primary function is to provid intr-nighborhood traffic movmnt. Local: Provid land accss and can xist in any land us stting. Movmnt is incidntal and involvs travl to and from a collctor facility. Sourc: Transportation Land Dvlopmnt Institut of Transportation Enginrs, Figur VI-1 Circulation Map illustrats Randolph s roadway classification systm, as wll as problm aras and rcommndd circulation improvmnts. A brif dscription of th mod and function of ach major roadway dfind by its classification is includd blow. 2.1 Major Artrials Nw Jrsy Rout 10 varis in width from two to six lans within th Township. A six lan cross sction with thr lans of travl in ach dirction xists from th Township of Dnvill municipal bordr to a point approximatly 1,500 ft wst of th intrsction with Millbrook Avnu. Th rmaining lngth of Rout 10 consists of a four lan cross sction with two lans of travl in ach dirction. Rout 10 is a major artrial travrsing th northrn portion of th Township in an ast-wst dirction. Rout 10 is dividd by a pavd mdian from th Dnvill Township boundary wst to just wst of th Millbrook Av intrsction. 2.2 Minor Artrials Sussx Turnpik (County Rout 617): is a minor artrial road travrsing Randolph in a north-wst to southast dirction. At th northwst boundary with Roxbury Township, Sussx Turnpik bgins at a grad-sparatd intrchang with Rout 10, providing accss to/from Morris Township and points southast. Whr Lif Is Worth Living VI-3

4 Township of Randolph Mastr Plan Dovr-Chstr Road (County Rout 513): is a minor artrial travrsing th Township in a southwst to northast dirction. Rout 513 provids accss to Chstr Township to th southwst and continus north to Quakr Church Road. At th intrsction with Rout 10, Dovr-Chstr Road provids on lft turn lan for ach dirction and on straight through lan with channlizd right-turn lans, as wll as nar-sid jughandls. Just north of Rout 10, Dovr-Chstr Road is a two-lan roadway with a T intrsction with Quakr Church Road. Quakr Church Road (County Rout 513): is a minor artrial travrsing th Township in an ast to wst dirction. Quakr Church Road strtchs ast from Dovr Chstr Road to Rsrvoir Avnu. Rsrvoir Avnu (County Rout 513) is a minor artrial strtching in a north to south dirction btwn Quakr Church Road and th municipal boundary with th Town of Dovr. Wst Hanovr Avnu (County Rout 650) is an ast-wst minor artrial road bginning an offst intrsction with Brooksid Road intrsction with Sussx Turnpik and continuing to th astrn boundary with Dnvill and Morris Townships. Wst Hanovr Avnu provids accss to various rsidntial nighborhoods in th southastrn part of Randolph, whil at th sam tim carrying through traffic to and from points ast of th Township. 2.3 Major Collctors Millbrook Avnu (County Rout 670 south of School Hous Road) is a 2-lan north-south major collctor roadway conncting Sussx Turnpik with South Morris Strt in th Town of Dovr. North of Rout 10, Millbrook Avnu is dsignatd as County Rout 656. It collcts and distributs traffic btwn minor collctors and th artrials such as Rout 10 and Sussx Turnpik. School Hous Road/Cntr Grov Road (County Rout 670) is a major collctor roadway conncting Millbrook Avnu to th Town of Dovr. It is a 2-lan roadway xcpt for th 4- to 5-lan crosssction that xists from Lawrnc Road north to Quakr Church Road. Rout 670 collcts and distributs traffic to/from Rout 10 and provids accss to/from th County Collg of Morris. South Salm Strt (County Rout 665) conncts Dovr to th northwst with a grad sparatd intrchang at Rout 10 to th southast. This roadway passs through Victory Gardns Borough which is straddld on both sids by Randolph Township. South Morris Strt is a two-lan major collctor roadway conncting Dovr to th northwst with Rout 10 to th southast. A majority of this roadway lis in Dovr; howvr, all traffic orintd to/from wstbound Rout 10 that utilizs South Morris Strt must pass through Randolph. Canfild Avnu is a two-lan major collctor roadway conncting Rout 46 to th north with Rout 10 to th south. Uss along Canfild Avnu includ th Canfild Industrial Park, Canfild Mws Apartmnt Complx, Aspn Community Complx and a Nw Jrsy Dpartmnt of Motor Vhicls Inspction Station. Lawrnc Road/Evrdal Road/Shongum Road is a two-lan major collctor roadway systm which collcts and distributs traffic btwn rsidntial subcollctors and Wst Hanovr Avnu. Whr Lif Is Worth Living VI-4

5 Township of Randolph Mastr Plan Calais Road/Plasant Hill Road: Calais Road is a two-lan, ast-wst major collctor roadway conncting rsidntial aras in Randolph and Chstr Townships to th wst with Sussx Turnpik to th ast. Plasant Mill Road provids som widnd improvd sctions whr rsidntial subdivisions hav bn constructd. 2.4 Minor Collctors Quakr Church Road/Franklin Road: is a two-lan minor collctor roadway that collcts and distributs traffic btwn rsidntial proprtis and th north/south roadways that accss Rout 10. Park Avnu is a two-lan minor collctor roadway conncting Sussx Turnpik to th north with Dovr-Chstr Road to th south. Carrll Road is a two-lan minor collctor roadway that varis in width with widnd improvd sctions including curbing nar th nwly dvlopd rsidntial subdivisions. Carrll Road has rsidntial uss on both sids. 3.0 VEHICULAR TRAFFIC VOLUMES Randolph Township, lik many othr municipalitis in Nw Jrsy continus to xprinc a significant incras in housing. As notd in th 1992 Plan, Randolph s road systm is affctd by traffic growth from nighboring municipalitis in addition to locally-gnratd traffic. Although it is undsirabl to hav a high volum of through traffic travling along Township roadways, Randolph Township s gographical location dos not prmit othrwis. Th following discussion about Township major routs takn from th 1992 Mastr Plan is still rlvant today and is rpatd blow with minor rvisions. Rout 10 is th most havily travld roadway in th Township. Traffic volum is highly dirctional with havy astbound volum during morning pak hour and th rvrs during th vning pak hour. Rout 10 havy astbound traffic flows during morning pak hour causs vhicls to wait at mor than on signal cycl lngth at th signalizd intrsctions. This is th cas in particular at th intrsction of Rout 10 with Cntr Grov Road. Sussx Turnpik is th scond most havily travld roadway in th Township, particularly th sction btwn Millbrook Avnu and Wst Hanovr Avnu. Th traffic data suggsts that this roadway is usd by traffic with origins and dstinations outsid th Township. Eastbound traffic flows along Sussx Turnpik ar havy during th morning pak priod. Passing is virtually impossibl and traffic flow bcoms dns whn slowr vhicls or othr intrruptions ar ncountrd during pak hours. This is spcially vidnt at th Millbrook Avnu traffic signal. Improvmnts hav bn compltd in conjunction with th Acm Suprmarkt dvlopmnt. Dovr-Chstr Road traffic volums ar lss than Sussx Turnpik but still havy. North-south traffic travling through th township gnrally uss Dovr-Chstr Road. Millbrook Avnu traffic volums ar significant with th majority of Millbrook Avnu traffic having ithr an origin or dstination within Randolph Township. Whr Lif Is Worth Living VI-5

6 Township of Randolph Mastr Plan Cntr Grov Road: Th sction of Cntr Grov Road south of Rout 10 xprincs rlativly high traffic bcaus of th narby accss to th County Collg of Morris. Wst Hanovr Avnu traffic is a mixtur of local and through traffic. An analysis of Wst Hanovr Avnu indicats that passing is virtually impossibl whn traffic flow bcoms dns during pak hours. 4.0 VEHICULAR PROBLEM AREAS A numbr of aras wr idntifid in th 1992 Mastr Plan as vhicular circulation problm aras. Som of ths problms hav bn corrctd. Thos aras that still nd improvmnt ar numbrd blow in Tabl VI-2 and ar locatd on Figur VI-1 Circulation Map. Tabl VI-2 PROBLEM AREAS Problm Ara Problm Dscription 1 Stp roadway grad; limitd sight distanc 2 Limitd sight distanc 3 Limitd sight distanc 4 Limitd sight distanc 5 Dangrous rvrs curv 6 Limitd sight distanc 7 Difficult alignmnt 8 Difficult alignmnt 9 Difficult alignmnt 10 Limitd sight distanc 11 Limitd sight distanc 12 Limitd sight distanc 13 Limitd sight distanc All of th traffic safty problm aras idntifid abov should b considrd whn rviwing dvlopmnt applications which may impact ths locations. During th prparation of tchnical rports prpard as part of this mastr plan procss, additional traffic issus wr notd. For instanc, during th prparation of th Rout 10 Corridor Study, it was notd that accss to Morris County Community Collg prsntly occurs from drivways on Cntr Grov Road and Dovr Chstr Road. During morning pak hours, th turning lans from Rout 10 suffr from vry havy traffic volums. Th Township ncourags and would support an application for dirct ingrss and grss to th collg campus from Rout 10 astbound lans. It was also notd that th intrsction of Irish Spring Road and astbound Rout 10 poss safty issus. An acclration lan dos not xist and th road s sight distanc and signag is poor. This is a concrn in particular, Whr Lif Is Worth Living VI-6

7 Township of Randolph Mastr Plan bcaus Irish Spring Road srvs as a lg of th wstbound to astbound U-turn movmnt for th highway. Th Mount Frdom Villag Cntr Study Tchnical Rport stats that Sussx Turnpik is slatd for roadway improvmnts by th Stat of Nw Jrsy Dpartmnt of Transportation to bttr accommodat th high volums of ast-wst travling to/from Morristown. Ths proposd improvmnts includ raligning and widning Sussx Turnpik from two lans to four lans through Mount Frdom from Calais Road to Wst Hanovr Avnu. Associatd road improvmnts includ dvlopmnt of sidwalks along th southrn sction of Sussx Turnpik within th commrcial cor ara of Mount Frdom. Sidwalks ar proposd to continu along portions of th northrn sction of th Turnpik as wll, from Harvy Trrac ast to th nd of th road improvmnts along Wst Hanovr Avnu. Aftr its compltion, Sussx Turnpik will b on avrag about 46 ft wid in th Villag Cntr ara. Also, plannd is th ralignmnt of Wst Hanovr Avnu with th Brooksid Road right-of-way. This will allow for this ara to b rdsignd as a four-way intrsction. Sidwalks will b providd at all four cornrs of this intrsction. Th Mount Frdom Villag Cntr Study idntifis th nd for additional local roads and allys to support th futur vision for Mount Frdom xprssd in th Villag Cntr Study. Th purpos of ths nw roads is xplaind in dtail in th Villag Cntr Study and summarizd blow: Nw local roads ar proposd in th Zion Tract to support nw dvlopmnt proposd for this ara north of Sussx Turnpik and Wst Hanovr Avnu intrsction. Nw local roads ar also proposd Knsington Squar rquird linking housing proposd for this nw dvlopmnt to th rst of th Villag Cntr. Roads for Knsington Squar will b undr privat ownrship. Woodlawn Trrac is rcommndd in th Villag Cntr Study to b xtndd to intrsct with Sussx Turnpik. This road xtnsion allows for accss to th proprtis along Sussx Turnpik from th back whr parking would b locatd and shard by th businsss proposd to b locatd along this rout. This would liminat th numrous drivways that front on to Sussx Turnpik prsntly causing congstion and vhicular conflicts. Allys and lans ar proposd for th Mount Frdom ara to allow rsidnts to accss garags, locatd at th rar of th parcls or parking providd bhind commrcial buildings. 5.0 PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION As statd in th 1992 Mastr Plan, svral mods of public transportation ar availabl in Randolph Township including bus and limitd paratransit srvic. Th issus involvd with ach form of public transportation ar discussd blow. Whr Lif Is Worth Living VI-7

8 Township of Randolph Mastr Plan 5.1 Bus Srvic Morris County Mtro oprats th MCM2 bus lin undr agrmnt with Nw Jrsy Transit. Th following MCM2 bus stops in Randolph Township idntifid in th 1992 Mastr Plan hav not changd. Ths bus stops xist at: County Collg of Morris (origin of astbound rout to Morristown). Intrsction of Quakr Church Road and Dovr-Chstr Road. A&P Shopping Cntr at th intrsction of Cntr Grov and Quakr Church Roads K-Mart / South Salm Strt and Rout 10. Bus srvic currntly oprats Monday through Friday during daytim and arly vning hours. Th astbound rout originats at th County Collg, maks th nxt two stops listd abov, followd by a stop in Dovr and Victory Gardns bfor th final stop in Randolph at th K-Mart Shopping Cntr. This rout continus to Morristown providing accss to thr rail stations and pak hour srvic to th Prudntial Businss Campus. Th wstbound rout originats at th Morristown Rail Station and trminats at th County Collg. As in 1992, Lakland Bus Lins oprats a rout through Morris County to/from Port Authority Bus Trminal in Nw York City. Th narst stop for pak hour srvic is in Dnvill whil off-pak srvic is availabl to/from Dovr whr parking is availabl. Nw Jrsy Transit dos not hav formal plans to xpand bus srvic to/from Randolph Township as funding is not availabl. Evntually, xpansion of xisting bus routs must b considrd as dvlopmnt of th Villag Cntr occurs. Initially, on stop could b providd at th cornr of Sussx Turnpik and Millbrook Avnu. Whn th Villag Cntr dvlops along Sussx Turnpik btwn Calais Road and Wst Hanovr Avnu, a bus stop on ithr nd of this corridor should b considrd. 5.2 Rail Srvic Jrsy Transit s passngr rail systm provids srvic to Hobokn and Nw York via station in Dovr, th narst opportunity for Randolph Township citizns. This station is locatd along th Boonton lin. Parking is providd at th Dovr rail station for a f. Som rsidnts also us stations in Morris Plains and Morristown. 5.3 Othr Typs of Public Transportation Th Morris Ara Paratransit Systm (MAPS) provids transportation for ldrly and handicappd prsons. Using small buss and vans, MAPS provids transportation to doctors, clinics, social srvics and othr locations. MAPS provids transportation srvic upon rqust. Information on this srvic is availabl through Morris County. Morris County dos not provid any othr shuttl bus srvic. Whr Lif Is Worth Living VI-8

9 Township of Randolph Mastr Plan 6.0 PEDESTRIAN Th Randolph Township has a wll plannd trail ntwork that conncts svral rsidntial aras within th Township with opn spac, historic sits, and othr placs of intrst. Figur VI-2 Trail Map idntifis th trail ntwork that xtnds throughout th Township that includs trails that hav bn constructd during th prvious dcad as wll as thos trails that ar plannd for th futur. Th Township s xisting trail ntwork conncts to othr Townships within Morris County through connction to th County s Patriots Path trail. 6.1 Morris County Parks Trail Systm Th Morris County Parks Commission is continually nhancing Patriots Path, which is a ntwork of hiking, biking, qustrian trails, and grn opn spacs that link svral townships togthr with Fdral, stat, county, and municipal parks, watrshd lands, historic sits and othr points of intrst across Morris County. Patriots Path s purpos is to protct and nhanc th nvironmnt and asthtic intgrity of th stram vallys and uplands through which it passs, whil providing opportunitis for passiv outdoor rcration. Morris County Parks Commission has svral xisting trails within Randolph, which includ right-of-ways along Willow and Dpdal Drivs (whr thr ar plans to connct to th futur county park at Gryston), Roc Etam Road, and Nw Brry Plac (whr thr ar plans to connct to th futur Dnbrook Grnway Trail). Th County s fifty-mil Patriots Path trail ntwork is locatd throughout Morris County and is comprisd of various trail surfacs including crushd ston and gravl, pavmnt, and xposd arth and rock. Svral mils of trails li on cindr and gravl bds of old railroad lins. Th trails ar usd for hiking, horsback riding, cross-country skiing, biking, walking, and jogging. Similar trail surfacs and uss ar found in Randolph s xisting trail ntwork. 6.2 Randolph Township Trail Systm Randolph s xisting trail ntwork conncts th xisting opn spac, county and stat-ownd lands within th hart of th Township with surrounding nighborhoods, which includ Shongum, Ironia, and Millbrook. Th watrshd protction ara in th southrn part of th Township, which is locatd btwn Combs Hollow Road and Old Brooksid Road, is also linkd to th trail ntwork. This ara also conncts to Calais Road in Mndham. Trail right-of-ways utiliz xisting road and sidwalk ntworks whr it is fasibl to do so. Using xisting road and sidwalk ntworks allows for a mor comprhnsiv connction to xisting nighborhoods, thrby providing gratr accss to rsidntial communitis. Aras that us xisting roadways and sidwalk ntworks includ Dovr Chstr Road, Doby Road, Dolly Bridg Road, Calais Road, Bavr Dam Road, and Rickland Driv. Othr trails ar proposd to ti in north of th xisting trail ntwork that is locatd in th cntr of th Township. Ths futur trails would improv linkags with th Millbrook nighborhood and th xisting trail ntwork utilizing xisting opn spac and high priority lands that ar locatd south of Rout 10. Th Township has mad prior fforts to cross Rout 10 and xtnd through th County Whr Lif Is Worth Living VI-9

10 Township of Randolph Mastr Plan Collg of Morris campus, thrby linking to Quakr Church Road as wll as th xisting trails to th northwst. A sidwalk plan, subjct to availability of futur funding, for this portion of th Township is discussd in th Rout 10 Corridor study. Th intnt of additional sidwalks in this ara is to intrconnct th rsidntial nighborhoods with commrcial aras along Rout 10 and th Township s trail systm. A long trm goal is to connct th north sid of Randolph with th southrn portion which is prsntly dividd by Rout 10. A scond trail xtnsion proposd for th futur is notd on VI-2 Trails Map as xtnding along an abandond railroad bd. Compltion of this trail rquirs claring brush from th railroad bd and formally dsignating th rout as a trail. As statd in th Mount Frdom Villag Cntr Study, a tchnical rport compltd during th mastr planning procss, on of th primary goals for th futur of this ara is that it bcoms as pdstrian frindly as possibl. Rcommndations which ar subjct to rsidnt input and approval to improv pdstrian connctivity within Mount Frdom ar dscribd in dtail in th Villag Cntr Study. 7.0 RECOMMENDATIONS Th primary objctiv of th Circulation Elmnt is to outlin th mans for th saf and fficint movmnt of vhicls and pdstrians to, from and within th Township. Th following rcommndations ar providd in conjunction with th othrs outlind in this lmnt to hlp mt this objctiv: 1. Futur rsidntial and commrcial dvlopmnt should continu to b ncouragd to intrconnct thir sits with vhicular and pdstrian linkags, particularly in th Villag Cntr as outlind in th Villag Cntr Study and th Rout 10 Corridor Study as summarizd abov. 2. Nw Jrsy Dpartmnt of Transportation should b strongly ncouragd to mov forward with improving Sussx Turnpik. 3. Th Morris County Mtro (MCM) bus rout should b xpandd to srv dmands along th Sussx Turnpik corridor, including Villag Cntr. 4. Opportunitis to xpand mass transportation in Randolph Township should b pursud with th assistanc of dvloprs and othr govrnmnt agncis. 5. Complt th rcommndations idntifid abov, and in th Rout 10 Corridor Study rgarding vhicular and pdstrian circulation. 6. Complt th rcommndations idntifid abov, and in th Mount Frdom Villag Cntr rgarding vhicular and pdstrian circulation. 8. Nw Jrsy Transit is ncouragd to xplor th possibility of a transit stop locatd in Randolph. Whr Lif Is Worth Living VI-10

11 Rockaway Township Town of Dovr Randolph Township, Nw Jrsy m sr voi ra v St Min Hill Township Randolph Mastr Plan l Sa S. Victory Gardns Borough MAP R Roxbury Township k r Q ua rc h R d 10 Rd Rout C hu G ro v 3 t r n Rd n c r Law rn pik D 13 o Township Boundary Dnvill Township Rd Sh o ng um 4 Strams 5 Parcls Functional Classification ok Av Tu rc ris v Mo r d h st r R 2 C Lgnd M i ll br o Major Artrial Minor Artrial 12 Su ss is Ro a d C al a x Tu rn pi k ll Ro a d Minor Collctor Parsippany-Troy Hills Township 8 10 Chstr Township Major Collctor ar r Ra d tk C Rd Pa rk Av 1 W. 7 Local Road n ov r Av Ha Problm Ara 6 11 Dob yr oad FIGURE VI-1 Morris Township 9 Mndham Township Mils Sourc: Randolph Township,

12 TRAILS MAP Rockaway Township Town of Dovr k r Q ua rc h R d 10 Rd Rout C hu St Roxbury Township Randolph Township, Nw Jrsy m Min Hill Township Randolph Mastr Plan l Sa S. Victory Gardns Borough G ro v Lgnd Dnvill Township t rn pik Township Boundary Do Strams M i ll br o ok Av Tu Parcls Rd c rn Law rc ris d h st r R r n v Mo r C Av Patriots Path Pa rk Existing Trails C Su ss is Ro a d C al a Chstr Township Dob yr x Tu rn pi k ar r ll Ro a Futur Trails d MCPC Futur Trails Parsippany-Troy Hills Township W. oad n ov r Av Ha FIGURE VI-2 Morris Township Mndham Township Mils Sourc: Randolph Township,