Access and Mobility Relationship

(1)

Functional Classification

The functional classification system defines both the function and role of a roadway within the hierarchy of an overall highway system . This system is used to create a roadway network that collects and distributes traffic from neighborhoods and ultimately to the state or interstate highway system . Functional classification planning works to manage mobility, access, spacing, and spacing of routes . Functional classification also seeks to align designations with current and future land use with the roadway’s purpose . Figure 2-2 illustrates the general relationship between functional classification, access, and mobility .

Figure 2-2: aCCeSSand mobility relationSHip

No Thru Traffic Low Speed No Local Traffic High Speed Complete Control Unrestricted Local County Roads County State Aid Highw ays Trunk Highw ays Express ways Freewa ys Collectors City Str eets and Township Roads Roads Arterials Minor Arterials Principal 75%

Mobility

Access

10% 10% 5% Source: MnDOT

Access and Mobility Relationship

Note: Percentage of Roadway Mileage Fu nc_tio na_{l C} las_sifi cat_ion

A roadway’s functional classification is based on a number of factors including: • Trip characteristics: length of route, type and size of activity centers, and

route continuity

• Access to regional population centers, activity centers, and major traffic generators

• Proportional balance of access, ease of approaching or entering a location • Proportional balance of mobility, ability to move without restrictions • Continuity between travel destinations

• Relationship with neighboring land uses • Eligibility for state and federal funding

The County’s functional classification system is broken down into four major categories – principal arterials, minor arterials, collectors, and local roadways . Figure 2-3 illustrates the typical functional characteristics for each of these categories . Figure 2-4 displays the existing functional classification system of the County’s highways .

(2)

Figure 2-3: FunCtional ClaSSiFiCation CHaraCteriStiCS Principal Arterials

• Connect major activity centers

• Provide significant continuity at a regional level • Serve long distance trips

• Provide limited access and high speeds • Serve regional or statewide travesheds • Example: I-94, TH 23, TH 15

Minor Arterials

• Connect key activity center

• Provide continuity on a sub-regional level • Serve medium to long distance trips • Provide limited access and high speeds • Serve regional travelsheds

• Example: TH 55, CSAH 10, CSAH 2

Collectors

• Connect local activity centers to arterials • Provide increased continuity at a local level • Serve short to medium length trips • Balance emphasis of access and mobility • Provide access to localized areas • Example: CSAH 23, CR 176

Local Routes

• Connect neighborhoods, businesses and schools • Provide access to higher-order roadways • Provide lowest degree of continuity • Allow closely spaced access points • Provide direct access to property • Serve limited travelsheds

(3)

Figure 2-4: StearnS County exiSting FunCtional ClaSSiFiCation SyStem RAYMOND ASHLEY ST. MARTIN FARMING MELROSE KRAIN LYNDEN MILLWOOD EDEN LAKE LUXEMBURG FAIR HAVEN CROW RIVER CROW LAKE NORTH FORK LAKE GEORGE SPRING HILL COLLEGEVILLE ST. WENDEL GETTY OAK LAKE HENRY MUNSON ZION GROVE HOLDING BROCKWAY LE SAUK ST. JOSEPH MAINE PRAIRIE SAUK CENTRE WAKEFIELD PAYNESVILLE ALBANY _AVON W r i g h t U W133 U W44 U W47 U W71 UW8 U W31 U W43 U W138 U W45 U W48 U W11 U W2 U W19 U W17 U W13 U W23 U W44 U W1 U W72 UW17 U W64 U W13 U W9 U W28 U W13 U W49 U W7 U W75 U W54 U W34 U W30 U W41 U W10 U W51 U W18 U W50 U W115 U W9 U W10 U W29 U W9 U W42 U W52 U W26 U W137 U W19 U W5 U W65 U W136 U W12 U W21 U W14 U W12 U W2 U W75 U W40 U W18 U W32 U W33 U W3 U W27 U W10 U W16 U W22 U W17 U W39 U W36 U W2 U W4 S@140 S @139 S @ 148 S @ 170 S @152 S @ 189 S @146 S@154 S @183 S @ 167 S @ 136 S@153 S@188 S@184 S @ 191 S @193 S @159 S @ 160 S @147 S @ 168 S@165 S @194 S @ 175 S @ 155 S @ 131 S@186 S @162 S @ 123 S @ 187 S @190 S @ 130 S @ 192 S @178 S @ 129 S @ 199 S @151 S @ 156 S @185 S @161 S @ 177 S @ 142 S@149 S @ 173 S @201 S @ 176 S @ 141 U W9 Westport Little Rock Calhoun Green Nest Long Florida Norway Francis Clear Pearl Big Fish Rice Koronis Crow Big Birch Cedar Mink Sugar Clearwater Lake Sylvia Big Spunk Grand Middle Mud Greenwald Meire Grove Regal Rice Saint Rosa South Haven Spring Hill Watkins Saint Anthony Freeport Kimball Lake Henry Eden Valley Holdingford Belgrade Brooten Avon Melrose Maple Lake Elrosa Saint Martin Albany Saint Stephen Annandale Clearwater Saint Augusta Rockville Sauk Centre Richmond Paynesville New Munich Saint Joseph Waite Park Sauk Rapids Sartell Saint Cloud Spicer New London Cold Spring

!

b

)

m

)

m

?

²

A

@

?

½

A

@

?

²

A

@

?

Ø

A

@

?

»

A

@

?

Ø

A

@

?

¨

A

@

?

¨

A

@

!

b

?

¼

A

@

?

¼

A

@

?

¼

A

@

?

¬

A

@

?

½

A

@

)

w

)

w

?

Á

A

@

?

±

A

@

?

°

A

@

K a n d i y o h i K a n d i y o h i M e e k e r M e e k e r S h e r b u r n e S h e r b u r n e B e n t o n B e n t o n P o p e P o p e Stearns County 2040 Transportation Plan 0 5 10 Miles

[

Principal Arterial Minor Arterial Major Collector Urban Collector Minor Collector Local Railroads Municipal Areas APO Boundary

G

X

1 S @ 142

?

²

A

@

!

b

Interstate State Highway

County State Aid Highway County Road ROAD SYMBOLS ST. WENDEL _{LE SAUK} ST. JOSEPH

U

W

133

U

W

138

U

W

2

U

W

75

U

W

137

S

@

136 Saint Joseph Waite Park Sauk Rapids Sartell Saint Cloud

)

m

S h e r b u r n e

See Inset Inset Figure 2-4

(4)

The four primary functional classification categories are further defined for urban or rural systems . Urban functionally classified roadways are located in municipalities with populations exceeding 5,000 . The Cities of St . Cloud, Sartell, St . Joseph and Waite Park are the only municipalities within Stearns County that meet this threshold . Under Minnesota state law, a city is eligible for municipal state-aid (MSA-status) once it reaches the 5,000 person threshold . This means the municipality can establish MSA street designation and receive state gas tax remittance . All of these cities are located within the St . Cloud Metropolitan Planning Area .

Rural functional classification systems provide intra and inter-county service, linking urban areas and cities to form a cohesive county-wide network . MnDOT recommends spacing at intervals consistent with population density, so that developed areas are within a reasonable distance to major roadways .

While established urban limits may not directly influence a route’s function, they may trigger an opportunity to change functional classification terminology . Under new state and federal functional classification guidance, collectors and minor arterials may be upgraded by one classification when a roadway enters an urban area, but only if the function of the road changes at the boundary . For example, major collector routes that feed traffic from the rural areas entering into an urban area may be upgraded to minor arterial routes only if the function actually changes .

Understanding characteristics of both urban and rural functional classification systems is important to ensure that existing and future land uses coincide with the roadway purpose, roadway access, geometrics, and design compatibility . The formal process of determining urban and rural functional classification is outlined in the Federal Highway Administration’s (FHWA) Manual, Highway Functional Classification – Concepts, Criteria and Procedures, 2013 Edition . This set of guidelines is commonly used by MnDOT and Minnesota counties as a comparison tool . These guidelines provide ranges of system mileage for the urban and rural functional classification systems . Guidelines are helpful to ensure that mobility, access, and alignment of routes are balanced .

Table 2-5 summarizes the current Stearns County functional classification system for rural areas and non-metropolitan cities by mileage and compliance with the FHWA standards . Table 2-6 and Table 2-7 present the existing county

table 2-5: StearnS County exiSting rural FunCtional ClaSSiFiCation

(Does not include mileage within the St . Cloud Metropolitan Planning Area) Functional Classification

System Actual Miles PercentActual FHWA System Mileage Guidelines (%) Deviation

Principal Arterial

Interstate 40 2% 1 - 3 %

3 - 11 % Within Range

Other Freeways &

Expressways 68 3% 0 - 2 %

Other Principal

Arterials 0 0% 2 - 6 %

Minor Arterial 51 2% 2 - 6 % Within Range

Major Collector 331 14% 8 - 19 %

Minor Collector 249 10% 3 - 15 %

Local 1, 701 70% 62 - 74 % Within Range

Total 2,441 100%

Source: FHWA Functional Classification Guidelines – Concepts, Criteria and System Characteristics, 2013.

table 2-6: StearnS County metropolitan area’S exiSting rural FunCtional ClaSSiFiCation

Functional Classification

System Actual Miles PercentActual FHWA System Mileage Guidelines (%) Deviation

Principal Arterial Interstate 15 4% 1 - 3 % 5 - 14 % Within Range Other Freeways & Expressways 14 4% 0 - 2 % Other Principal Arterials 2 0% 4 - 9 %

Local 266 67% 62 - 74 % Within Range

Total 394 100%

(5)

table 2-7: StearnS County metropolitan area’S exiSting urban FunCtional ClaSSiFiCation

Functional Classification

System Actual Miles PercentActual Mileage GuidelinesFHWA (%) System Deviation

Principal Arterial

Interstate 6 1% 1 - 3 %

Other Freeways &

Expressways 14 3% 0 - 2 %

Other Principal

Arterials 13 3% 4 - 9 %

Local 372 72% 62 - 74 % Within Range

Total 519 100%

From the analysis, it is apparent that the County’s rural functional classification system (Table 2-5) is within and consistent with FHWA guidelines . Both the rural (Table 2-6) and urban (Table 2-7) functional classification systems within the metropolitan area are currently within accepted guidelines .

Additionally, it appears the County has the ability to increase roadway mileage for minor arterials (rural and urban) and collectors (rural, metropolitan rural, and metropolitan urban) in its future system plan, and maintain consistency with FHWA guidelines .

Jurisdictional Classification

The objective of efficient road jurisdiction planning is to ensure that the management of each roadway is closely aligned with its function and the jurisdiction best suited to maintain it . The jurisdiction of highways is an important component of the Transportation Plan because it defines the regulatory, maintenance, construction, and financial obligations of each governmental unit .

The hierarchy of jurisdictional classification is typically established so that higher-volume, regional corridors carrying inter-county traffic are maintained by MnDOT (e .g ., interstates and state trunk highways), and intermediate volume corridors with more limited travelsheds (e .g ., CSAHs and county roads) are maintained by the County . While roadways serving local traffic (e .g ., MSASs/ city streets and township roads) are maintained by the individual municipalities or townships . Figure 2-5 summarizes the typical characteristics for each jurisdictional category found within Stearns County .

(6)

Figure 2-5: JuriSdiCtional ClaSSiFiCation CHaraCteriStiCS State System

• Statewide function • Mulit-county facilities • Regional Connectivity • Higher Travel Speeds • Example: I-95, TH 55, TH 23

County Road System

• Regional connectivity • Moderate traffic volumes

• Connect urban and outlying rural areas • Paved or gravel routes

• Example: CSAH 22, CSAH 9, CSAH 2

City Routes

• Short segments with small travelsheds • Serve local land access needs • Moderate traffic volumes • Limited continuity with rural areas

Township

• Limited travelsheds • Lack of continuity • Low traffic volumes

• Provide access to adjacent property

Within the Stearns County roadway system, jurisdiction is divided among five entities . Table 2-8 provides a summary by mileage of the current roadway jurisdiction . A map of the existing roadway jurisdiction within the County is presented in Figure 2-6 .

table 2-8: StearnS County JuriSdiCtional roadway Summary

Jurisdictional Classification System Mileage

State System Interstate Highway 61 7% US Highway 26 State Highway 157 County System

County State Aid Highway 642

29%

County Road 324

Township Road 1,443 43%

City or Other 700 21%

(7)

Figure 2-6: StearnS County exiSting JuriSdiCtional ClaSSiFiCation RAYMOND ASHLEY ST. MARTIN FARMING MELROSE KRAIN LYNDEN MILLWOOD EDEN LAKE LUXEMBURG FAIR HAVEN CROW RIVER CROW LAKE NORTH FORK LAKE GEORGE SPRING HILL COLLEGEVILLE ST. WENDEL GETTY OAK LAKE HENRY MUNSON ZION GROVE HOLDING BROCKWAY LE SAUK ST. JOSEPH MAINE PRAIRIE SAUK CENTRE WAKEFIELD PAYNESVILLE ALBANY AVON W r i g h t U W133 U W44 U W47 U W71 UW8 U W31 U W43 U W138 U W45 U W48 U W11 U W2 U W19 U W17 U W13 U W23 U W44 U W1 U W72 UW17 U W64 U W13 U W9 U W28 U W13 U W49 U W7 U W75 U W54 U W34 U W30 U W41 U W10 U W51 U W18 U W50 U W115 U W9 U W10 U W29 U W9 U W42 U W52 U W26 U W137 U W19 U W5 U W65 U W136 U W12 U W21 U W14 U W12 U W2 U W75 U W40 U W18 U W32 U W33 U W3 U W27 U W10 U W16 U W22 U W17 U W39 U W36 U W2 U W4 S@140 S @ 139 S @148 S @170 S @152 S @ 189 S@146 S @ 154 S@183 S @ 167 S @136 S @153 S @ 188 S @ 184 S @ 191 S @193 S @159 S @160 S @ 147 S @ 168 S@165 S@194 S @ 175 S@155 S @ 131 S@186 S @162 S @ 123 S @187 S @190 S @ 130 S @ 192 S @178 S @129 S @199 S @151 S @156 S@185 S@161 S @177 S @ 142 S @ 149 S@173 S @201 S @ 176 S@141 U W9 Westport Little Rock Calhoun Green Nest Long Florida Norway Francis Clear Pearl Big Fish Rice Koronis Crow Big Birch Sauk Cedar Mink Sugar Clearwater Lake Sylvia Big Spunk Grand Middle Mud Elmdale Greenwald Grey Eagle Meire Grove Regal Rice Saint Rosa South Haven Spring Hill Upsala West Union Watkins Saint Anthony Freeport Kimball Bowlus Lake Henry Eden Valley Holdingford Belgrade Brooten Royalton Avon Melrose Maple Lake Elrosa Saint Martin Albany Saint Stephen Annandale Clearwater Saint Augusta Rockville Sauk Centre Richmond Paynesville New Munich Saint Joseph Waite Park Sauk Rapids Sartell Saint Cloud Spicer New London Cold Spring

!

b

)

m

)

m

?

²

A

@

?

½

A

@

?

²

A

@

?

Ø

A

@

?

»

A

@

?

Ø

A

@

?

¨

A

@

?

¨

A

@

!

b

?

¼

A

@

?

¼

A

@

?

¼

A

@

?

¬

A

@

?

½

A

@

!

b

)

w

)

w

)

w

?

Á

A

@

?

Á

A

@

?

±

A

@

?

°

A

@

?

¾

A

@

K a n d i y o h i K a n d i y o h i M e e k e r M e e k e r S h e r b u r n e S h e r b u r n e B e n t o n B e n t o n M o r r i s o n M o r r i s o n T o d d T o d d P o p e P o p e Stearns County 2040 Transportation Plan 0 5 10 Miles

[

Interstate Highway U.S. Highway State Highway

County State Aid Highway County Road

Local Road (City or Township) Railroads Municipal Areas APO Boundary

G

X

1 S @142

?

²

A

@

!

b

Interstate State Highway

County State Aid Highway County Road

ROAD SYMBOLS

Figure 2-6 Existing Roadway Jurisdiction