6.a 8. TransportationVIII. TRANSPORTATION
A. Overview
The primary purpose of this Transportation chapter is provide guidance to City staff and elected
officials regarding the implementation of effective, integrated transportation facilities and
programs through the 2040 planning timeframe. This chapter is consistent with regional
requirements for transportation as captured in the Metropolitan Council's 2040 Local Planning
Handbook.
This section is organized into the following sections:
• Existing Roadway Conditions
• Roadway System Plan
• Transit Plan
• Non -Motorized Transportation Plan
• Freight Plan
• Aviation Plan
B. Transportation Goals and Objectives
Goal: As new development or redevelopment occurs, provide an integrated, internally -
connected, efficient street system connecting village and higher density neighborhoods to the
Village Center.
Policy: Discourage the creation of permanently long streets with only a single access point
(i.e., dead-end streets, looping streets and elongated cul-de-sacs).
Policy: Encourage design and land uses that support a range of transportation choices
Policy: Guide future development to roadways capable of accommodating resulting traffic.
Policy: Develop roadways and street systems with consideration for safety, speeds,
congestion, impact and noise pollution
Goal: Establish context -sensitive roadway design standards that will protect the narrow and
heavily wooded character of identified low -traffic roadways. (Please refer to further
information on Context Sensitive Solutions in the Roadway System Plan portion of this
Transportation section.)
Policy: Protect scenic rural roads, viewpoints and vistas identified through the planning
process from visually intrusive or incompatible development.
Goal: Maintain Scandia's system of local roadways that is well coordinated with MN DOT and
Washington County Roadways.
Policy: Develop a capital improvement program to ensure adequate funding for priority
roadway concerns.
Policy: Cooperate with County and State jurisdictions to keep through -traffic on arterials at
minimum disruption of local circulation and residents.
Policy: Through the subdivision review process for new developments, require that MN
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2. Jurisdictional Classification
Roadways are classified on the basis of which level of government owns and has jurisdiction
over them. In the case of Scandia, roadways are under the jurisdiction of MN DOT,
Washington County, or the City of Scandia. Figure VII -B depicts the existing roadway
jurisdictional classification system in Scandia.
DRAFT Scandia 2040 Comprehensive Plan Transportation
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3. Functional Classification
The functional classification system is a roadway network that distributes traffic from
neighborhood streets to collector roadways, then to minor arterials, and ultimately the
Metropolitan Highway System. Roads are placed into categories based on the degree to which
they provide access to adjacent land uses and lower level roadways versus providing higher -
speed mobility for "through" traffic. Functional classification is a cornerstone of transportation
planning. Within this approach, roads are located and designed to perform their designated
function.
Within the seven -county metropolitan area, there are six overall classifications of roadway as
defined by the Metropolitan Council:
• Principal arterial
• "A" minor arterial
• Other arterial
• Major collector
• Minor collector
• Local street
The Metropolitan Council has defined four sub -categories of "A" minor arterials: reliever,
expander, connector, and augmenter. These sub -categories have to do primarily with
Metropolitan Council's allocation of federal funding roadway improvements, but do not
translate into specific design characteristics or requirements.
For arterial roadways, the Metropolitan Council has designation authority. Local agencies may
request that their roadways become arterials (or are downgraded from arterial to collector), but
such designations or re -designations must be approved by the Metropolitan Council. The
agency that has jurisdiction over a given roadway (e.g. Washington County or the City of
Scandia) has the authority to designate collector status.
The current roadway functional classification map for Scandia as identified by the Metropolitan
Council is presented on Figure VIII -C. A summary of Scandia roadways by functional
classification follows.
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Principal Arterials
Principal arterials are the highest roadway classification and make up the Metropolitan
Highway System. The primary function of these roadways is to provide mobility for regional
trips, and they do not provide a direct land access function. Principal arterials are generally
constructed as limited access freeways, but may also be multiple -lane divided highways. There
are no principal arterials within the City of Scandia.
"A" Minor Arterials
These roads connect important locations within the City of Scandia with access points of the
Metropolitan Highway System and with important locations outside the City. These arterials
are also intended to carry short to medium trips that would otherwise use principal arterials.
While "A" minor arterial roadways provide more access than principal arterials, their primary
function is still to provide mobility rather than access to lower level roadways or adjacent land
uses. The "A" minor arterial roadways within Scandia are identified in Table VIII -A, below:
Other Arterinlc
Like "A" minor arterials, these roadways also serve more of a mobility function than access
function. However, they may not have as much regional importance as "A" minor arterials and
are not eligible for federal roadway improvement funding. There are no other arterials within
the City of Scandia.
Major and Minor Collectors
Collector roadways provide a balance of the mobility and land -use access functions discussed
above. They generally serve trips that are entirely within the City and connect neighborhoods
and smaller commercial areas to the arterial network. Minor collectors generally are shorter in
length, with lower volumes and lower speeds than major collectors. Current collector roadways
are identified in Table VIII -B, below.
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RoadwaysTable Vill-A — "A" Minor Arterial
Roadway
From
To
Number of Travel
Lanes (Total)
TH 97/Scandia Trl N
West City Limit
TH 95
2
TH 95/St. Croix Trl N
South City Limit
North City Limit
2
CSAH 3/01inda Trl N
South City Limit
North City Limit
2
CSAH 15/Manning Trl N
South City Limit
North City Limit
2
Other Arterinlc
Like "A" minor arterials, these roadways also serve more of a mobility function than access
function. However, they may not have as much regional importance as "A" minor arterials and
are not eligible for federal roadway improvement funding. There are no other arterials within
the City of Scandia.
Major and Minor Collectors
Collector roadways provide a balance of the mobility and land -use access functions discussed
above. They generally serve trips that are entirely within the City and connect neighborhoods
and smaller commercial areas to the arterial network. Minor collectors generally are shorter in
length, with lower volumes and lower speeds than major collectors. Current collector roadways
are identified in Table VIII -B, below.
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n•
• Existing gaps and continuity of roadway alignments
• Rural topography, wetlands, and other features
• Land use and zoning
• Market interest, parcel configuration, and anticipated build -out condition
Existing gaps in the local roadway network are identified on Figure VIII -D and include those
identified below:
• Location 1— 230'1' Street N, between Meadowbrook Avenue N and existing 230'1' Street
N approximately 2,000 feet to the east.
• Location 2 — Meadowbrook Road N between Oakhill Road N and Meadowbrook Road
N at the 218' Street N alignment, approximately %2 mile north of TH 97
• Location 3 — Novak Avenue N between current northerly terminus and Oakhill Road N
approximately 2,000 feet to the north.
• Location 4 — 209t1' Street N from Penrose Avenue N to Quality Trail N (wetlands would
likely preclude a direct connection to 209'' Street west of TH 95).
• Location 5 — Between Ozark Avenue N at 209' St N and Oxboro Avenue N at Oakhill
Road N (north -south continuous roadway)
• Location 6 — Between Olinda Lane N at Olinda Trail N and 215t1' Street N at Parrish
Road N
DRAFT Scandia 2040 Comprehensive Plan Transportation
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A common problem in developing rural areas is how to address the development of local streets
in the absence of a more detailed local street plan. The risks of a poorly planned and developed
street system include landlocked parcels, increased needs for direct access onto arterial roads,
parcels that require circuitous access, and/or parcels that have only one ingress/egress points
(e.g. long dead-end streets). Like other communities, Scandia requires that subdivisions
consider the interconnection of new local streets with future subdivisions and with applicable
state and county access management guidelines.
One concern among communities is the creation of long dead-end streets that become de facto
cul-de-sacs. While many communities identify maximum dead-end street length, Scandia
currently does not. Scandia should consider including this type of requirement through
ordinance restrictions.
Context Sensitive Solutions
Historically, roadway design was geared heavily towards providing large roads and systems
that could move vehicles as quickly and efficiently as possible. More recently, however, this
has changed and continues to change, based on the understanding that flexibility in roadway
design is needed to limit impacts to the local environment wherever possible. "Environment" is
not only used ecological sense, but the social and community character sense as well. This
overall trend is captured in the term and design practice "Context Sensitive Solutions." The
Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) uses the following definition:
"Context sensitive solutions (CSS) is a collaborative, interdisciplinary approach that
involves all stakeholders to develop a transportation facility that fits its physical setting
and preserves scenic, aesthetic, historic and environmental resources, while maintaining
safety and mobility. CSS is an approach that considers the total context within which a
transportation improvement project will exist. "
The FHWA references A Guide to Best Practices for Achieving Context Sensitive Solutions
(National Cooperative Highway Research Program) as being an authoritative resource.
Numerous other guidance documents are available.
As reflected in the City's Transportation Goals at the beginning of this chapter, the City of
Scandia embraces this concept, particularly as it pertains to maintaining the relatively narrow
and wooded/natural context of many roadways within the City.
2. Trunk Highway 97 at County Road 52 (Oakhill Road N) Study Area
This intersection is a key Highway 97 crossing location for vehicles as well as pedestrians and
bicyclists. It warrants safety study due to the following characteristics:
• Pronounced skew, combined with being on a curve
• Topography (rise/fall) affecting sight lines
• Proximity of adjacent access points (Oren Avenue N 390 feet to the east, private
driveway 300 feet to the west)
Scandia Elementary School in the southwest quadrant of this intersection, Lilleskogen Park is in the
southeast quadrant, and the intersection provides important access point into the Village Center.
Development north of TH 97 in this general portion of Scandia would increase traffic coming down
Oakhill Road N, adding to safety considerations.
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For the reasons summarized above, the City of Scandia will work with MN DOT and Washington
County to perform safety analysis as appropriate.
3. 2040 Traffic Projections and Capacity Deficiency Analysis
a) Assumed 2040 Collector/Arterial Roadway Network
Because no new collector/arterial roadways or expansions are programmed or planned over
the 2040 timeframe, the assumed 2040 roadway network is the same as the current network
for traffic forecasting purposes.
b) Assumed 2040 Land Use and Transportation Analysis Zone Information
Transportation Analysis Zones (TAZs) are used to project future traffic volumes. Each
TAZ has demographic and employment information that translates to vehicular trip origins
and destinations. A map of Scandia TAZs is provided in Figure VIII -E. The anticipated
future land use patterns discussed in the Land Use chapter of this Comprehensive Plan were
assumed for the 2040 TAZ allocations identified in Table VIII -C, below.
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*Please note: the information for these TAZs
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only for the portion of the TAZ within Scandia.
Transportation
Page 83
040 Scandia
TAZ Data
TAZ
Year
Population
Households
Retail Jobs
Non -Retail Jobs
Total Jobs
2281*
2020
94
38
0
14
14
2030
110
49
0
14
14
2040
130
55
0
14
14
2282*
2020
113
48
0
0
0
2030
113
48
0
0
0
2040
113
48
0
0
0
2283*
2020
310
130
0
0
0
2030
323
137
0
0
0
2040
339
144
0
0
0
2284
2020
220
80
0
12
12
2030
235
90
0
23
23
2040
250
100
10
25
35
2285
2020
450
180
10
22
32
2030
470
196
10
30
40
2040
490
210
10
30
40
2286
2020
710
280
10
65
75
2030
770
310
10
77
87
2040
801
340
10
79
89
2287
2020
910
356
30
90
120
2030
1,006
413
30
93
123
2040
1,081
460
30
95
127
2288
2020
510
198
10
42
52
2030
550
230
13
50
63
2040
581
250
15
50
65
2289
2020
190
80
0
20
20
2030
220
90
0
20
20
2040
241
99
10
20
30
2290
2020
0
0
0
20
20
2030
10
0
10
20
30
2040
21
9
10
20
30
2291
2020
400
160
50
170
220
2030
430
180
55
180
235
2040
461
199
60
185
245
2292*
2020
353
150
5
50
55
2030
393
167
5
50
55
2040
442
186
8
50
55
TOTALS
2020
4,260
1,700
115
505
620
2030
4,630
1,910
133
557
690
2040
4,950
2,100
163
568
730
*Please note: the information for these TAZs
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only for the portion of the TAZ within Scandia.
Transportation
Page 83
c) 2040 Traffic Projections
Estimated 2040 traffic volumes for roadways in Forest Lake are presented in Figure VIII -F.
These projections are based on the following methodology:
• Review of forecasts from the 2030 Scandia Comprehensive Plan
• Historic trend analysis for volumes on individual roadway segments
• Consideration of local context and anticipated development patterns
• Comparison with the results of Washington County's 2040 forecasts
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d) Future Capacity Needs Evaluation
A planning level analysis of potential roadway capacity needs was performed, based on
comparing the projected 2040 traffic volumes referenced above against the expected traffic
capacity for the applicable roadway types that are present in Scandia. The roadway capacity
levels were estimated based on Highway Capacity Manual (HCM) guidance and methods. The
HCM, published by the Transportation Research Board,' provides transportation practitioners
and researchers with a consistent and widely accepted system of techniques for assessing
roadway capacity and operational performance characteristics.
Table V111-1) — Typical Traffic Capacity by Roadway Type/Configu
ration — Roadways in Scandia
Roadway Design
Planning Level Capacity (vehicles per day)
2 -lane local/residential road
1,000
Rural 2 -lane minor collector
7,700
Rural 2 -lane highway (major collector/minor arterial)
13,000
Source: Bolton & Menk, Inc., Sixth Edition HCM methods
The resulting analysis shows that none of the roadways within Scandia are projected to be at or
approaching capacity by 2040. Therefore, no capacity expansion projects are identified in this
transportation plan.
4. Future Functional Classification
Re -designations of roadways involving the A -minor arterial functional classification (e.g. from
collector to arterial, from arterial to collector, or changing designations within arterial) is under
the authority of the Metropolitan Council. For collector roadways, the functional class
designation is under the authority of the agency that owns the given road.
The City of Scandia does not feel that any roadways within its borders need to be re-classified
from a functional classification perspective. The City is not aware that MN DOT or
Washington County wish to advance any such re -classifications. Therefore, Figure VIII -C is the
functional classification map for current and 2040 conditions.
5. Future Jurisdictional Classification
The City of Scandia does not anticipate a request for jurisdictional transfers regarding roadways
within its borders through the 2040 timeframe. Moreover, the City is not aware that
Washington County or MN DOT desire any such transfers. Therefore, Figure VIII -B identifies
both current and future jurisdictional classification information.
6. Access Management
Access management refers to balancing the need for connections to local land uses (access)
with the need for network -level movement (mobility) on the overall roadway system. By
functional classification, this may be summarized as follows:
' The Transportation Research Board is a unit of the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine.
DRAFT Scandia 2040 Comprehensive Plan Transportation
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• Arterials generally have limited access in the form of driveways and low volume side
streets because their role in the network is to support relatively long, high speed traffic
movements
• Collectors allow a greater degree of access given their combined mobility/access
function
• Local streets have relatively few limits on access because their primary function is to
provide access to adjacent land uses
Appropriate access control preserves the capacity on arterial and collector streets, and improves
safety by separating local turning movements from higher -speed "through" traffic. Moreover, it
concentrates higher volume traffic linkages at intersections controlled with traffic signals,
roundabouts, or other measures.
MN DOT and Washington County Roadways in Scandia are identified on Figure VIII -B. For
MN DOT roadways, MN DOT access management guidelines apply. Similarly, for County
roadways, Washington County's access management guidelines apply. MN DOT's access
management guidelines are described in detail in their Access Management Manual.' When
reviewing MN DOT's access guidelines, TH 97 in Scandia is classified as 5B (minor arterial,
urban/urbanizing), and TH 95 is classified as 5A (minor arterial, rural). Relevant MN DOT and
Washington County guidelines, respectively, are provided in Appendix E.
Land use planning and subdivision regulation are the responsibility of the City. In conjunction
with local land planning, Scandia will require that new land development complies with MN
DOT and County access management guidelines as applicable. The City will work with MN
DOT and Washington County to consolidate driveway and street access to collector and arterial
roadways where applicable and feasible.
7. Future Right -of -Way Preservation
The City has not defined specific corridors for roadway development where right-of-way can
be defined and preserved at this point.
E. Transit Plan
1. Transit Market Area
The Metropolitan Council has defined Transit Market Areas based on the following primary
factors:
Density of population and jobs
Interconnectedness of the local street system
Number of autos owned by residents
In general, areas with high density of population and jobs, highly interconnected local streets,
and relatively low auto ownership rates will have the greatest demand for transit services and
facilities. Transit Market Areas are a tool used to guide transit planning decisions. They help
ensure that the types and levels of transit service provided, in particular fixed -route bus service,
match the anticipated demand for a given community or area.
Based on this analysis, the Metropolitan Council categorizes the City of Scandia as Transit
' hqp://www.dot.state.inn.us/accessmanagement/resources.html
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Metropolitan Council has designated the Regional Bicycle Transportation Network (RBTN).
This consists of prioritized alignments and corridors (where alignments have not yet been
established) that were adopted in the Council's 2040 Transportation Policy Plan. There are no
RBTN alignments or corridors within or close to Scandia.
The largely rural nature of Scandia is not conducive to extensive pedestrian travel. The most
significant barrier to non -motorized movement would be TH 97, an east -west highway that
passes through central portion of Scandia and the northern portion of the Village Center area.
There is currently an all -way stop at the TH 97/01inda Trail intersection that provides
protection for pedestrians using the sidewalk along Olinda Trail. Any future north -south trail
development would require appropriate crossing treatments at TH 97. Any safety study of the
TH 97 County Road 52 (Oakhill Road N) intersection as referenced above will include a non -
motorized transportation component.
G. Freight Plan
One railroad passes through the eastern fringes of Scandia from south to north. The railroad
tracks are owned by the Canadian National Railway and approximately two trains per week
utilize the railroad tracks, based on MN DOT information. There are no manufacturing or
distribution centers in Scandia. Freight movement is not a major factor for the City. Existing
HCAADT information is depicted in Figure VIII -A.
H. Aviation Plan
There are no aviation facilities or navigational aids located in Scandia. At present, the only
suggested air facilities considered in Scandia would be a seaplane base on Big Marine Lake.
The city is not in an influence area of a regional airport. The closest public -use airport to
Scandia is the Osceola Municipal Airport (FAA Identifier OEO) located approximately 2.5
miles to the east-northeast. OEO is categorized as a Medium General Aviation Airport in
Wisconsin's 2030 State Airport System Plan. As such, it is primarily used for recreational
flying with some business use and is not anticipated to increase operations significantly over
the next 20 years. Scandia is outside all federal airspace restrictions and state zoning controls
for OEO. Scandia is not in a primary flight path of OEO.
There are no structures within Scandia that exceed 500 feet in height. Any applicant who
proposes to construct a structure 200 feet above the ground that could affect navigable airspace
level must get appropriate approvals. The Federal Aviation Administration and the Minnesota
Department of Transportation must be notified at least 30 days in advance in advance of
construction, as required by law per MCAR 8800.1200, Subpart 3 and FAA Form 7460-8. It is
unlikely such a structure would be proposed in Scandia.
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