Notwithstanding the requirements of Ch. 152 of this code of ordinances, the standards for all service drives shall be as follows.
(A) Site plan review. The Planning Commission shall review and approve all service drives to ensure safe and adequate continuity of the service drive between contiguous parcels as part of the site plan review process.
(B) Front and rear service drives. A front or rear service drive may be established on property that abuts only one public road. The design of a service road shall conform with national design guidelines such as those identified in the National Access Management Manual by TRB, the ASSHTO Greenbook, and National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP), Access Management Guidelines to Activity Centers, Report 348, and Impacts of Access Management Techniques, Report 420.
(C) Location. Service roads shall generally be parallel to the front property line and may be located whether in front of, or behind, principal buildings and may be placed in required yards. In considering the most appropriate alignment for a service road, the Planning Commission shall consider the setbacks of existing and/or proposed buildings and anticipated traffic flow for the site.
(D) Width and construction. A service drive shall be within an access easement permitting traffic circulation between properties. The easement shall be recorded with the County Register of Deeds. This easement shall be at least 32 feet wide. A service drive shall have a minimum pavement width of 24 feet, measured face to face at the curb with an approach width of a minimum of 27 feet at the intersection. The service drive shall be constructed of a paved surface material that is resistant to erosion and shall meet the Saginaw/Bay County Road Commission standards for base and thickness of asphalt or concrete, unless the community has more restrictive standards.
(E) Snow storage and landscaping areas. A minimum of six feet of snow storage/landscaping area shall be reserved along both sides of the service drive.
(F) Stacking. A minimum of 60 feet of storage at the intersection for entering and existing vehicles as measured from the pavement edge must be provided for all frontage roads. At driveways where it can be demonstrated that traffic volumes will exceed 750 vehicles per day or 100 vehicles during the peak hour, a minimum of 80 feet of stacking space shall be required.
(G) Distance from intersection on service drives. Frontage roads and service drive intersections at the collector or arterial street shall be designed according to the same minimum standards as described for driveways.
(H) Driveway entrance. The Planning Commission shall approve the location of all access to the service drive, based on the driveway spacing standards referenced in this chapter. Access to the service drive shall be located so that there is no undue interference with the free movement of service drive and emergency vehicle traffic, where there is safe sight distance, and where there is a safe driveway grade as established by the MDOT and Saginaw/Bay County Road Commission.
(I) Driveway radii. All driveway radii shall be shall be concrete curbs and conform with the requirements of the MDOT Access Management Guidebook.
(J) Acceleration lanes and tapers. The design of the driveway, acceleration, deceleration or taper shall conform with the requirements of the MDOT Access Management Guidebook.
(K) Elevation. The elevation of a service drive shall be uniform or gently sloping between adjacent properties.
(L) Service drive maintenance. No service drive shall be established on an existing right-of-way. The service drive shall be a public street (if dedicated and accepted by the applicable Road Commission) or a private road if permitted, maintained by the adjoining property owners it serves who shall enter into a formal agreement for the joint maintenance of the service drive. The agreement shall also specify who is responsible for enforcing speed limits, parking and related vehicular activity on the service drive. This agreement shall be approved by the municipality's attorney and recorded with the Register of Deeds. If the service drive is a private road, the local government shall reserve the right to make repairs or improvements to the service drive and charge back the costs.
(M) Landscaping. Landscaping along the service drive shall conform to the requirements of the municipality's zoning ordinance. Installation and maintenance of landscaping shall be the responsibility of the developer or a property owners association.
(N) Parking areas. All separate parking areas (those that do not use joint parking cross access) shall have no more than one access point or driveway on the service drive.
(O) Parking. The service road is intended to be used exclusively for circulation, and not as parking, loading or unloading aisle. Parking shall be prohibited along two-way frontage roads and service drives that are constructed at the minimum width. One-way roads or two-way roads designed with additional width for parallel parking may be allowed if it can be demonstrated through traffic studies that on-street parking will not significantly affect the capacity, safety or operation of the frontage road or service drive. Perpendicular or angle parking along either side of a designated frontage road or service drive is prohibited. The Planning Commission may require the posting of "no parking" signs along the service road.
(P) Directional signs and pavement markings. Pavement markings may be required to help promote safety and efficient circulation. The property owner shall be required to maintain all pavement markings. All directional signs and pavement markings along the service drive shall conform with the current Michigan Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices.
(Q) Assumed width of pre-existing service drives. Where a service drive in existence prior to the effective date of this provision has no recorded width, the width will be considered to be 26 feet for the purpose of establishing setbacks and will be measured an equal distance from the midpoint of the road surface.
(R) Alternate cross access. In the case of expansion, alteration to redesign of an existing development where it can be demonstrated that preexisting conditions prohibit installation of a frontage road or service drive in accordance with these standards, the Planning Commission shall have the authority to allow and/or require alternate cross access between adjacent parking areas through the interconnection of main circulation aisles. Under these conditions, the aisles serving the parking stalls shall be aligned perpendicularly to the access aisle, with islands, curbing and signage to further delineate the edges of the route to be used by through traffic. (See the MDOT Access Management Guidebook for further detail and sample drawings.)
(Ord. 06-14-Z, passed 10-3-2006; Ord. 06-14, passed 10-17-2006)