(a) Statement of Purpose. The purpose of this section is to provide access standards which will facilitate through-traffic operations, ensure public safety along roadways, and protect the public investment in the street system, while providing property owners with reasonable, though not always direct, access. The standards are specifically designed for streets whose primary function is the movement of through traffic, as opposed to local streets whose primary function is access to adjacent properties.
(b) Application of Standards.
(1) The standards of this section shall be applied to the following major traffic routes (arterials) identified in the City of Lincoln Park Comprehensive Development Plan: Southfield Road, Fort Street, Dix Avenue, and Outer Drive.
(2) The access standards contained herein shall be required in addition to, and where permissible shall supersede, the requirements of the Michigan Department of Transportation and/or Wayne County.
(3) The standards contained in this section shall apply to all uses, except permitted single-family and two (2)-family dwelling units.
(4) For expansion and/or redevelopment of existing sites where the Planning Commission determines that compliance with all the standards of this section is unreasonable, the standards shall be applied to the maximum extent possible. In such situations, suitable alternatives which substantially achieve the purpose of this section may be accepted by the Planning Commission, provided that the applicant demonstrates that all of the following apply:
A. The size of the parcel is insufficient to meet the dimensional standards.
B. The spacing of existing, adjacent driveways or environmental constraints prohibit adherence to the access standards at a reasonable cost.
C. The use will generate less than five hundred (500) total vehicle trips per day or less than seventy-five (75) total vehicle trips in the peak hour of travel on the adjacent street, based on rates developed by the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE).
D. There is no other reasonable means of access.
(c) Number of Driveways.
(1) Access to a parcel shall consist of either a single two (2)-way driveway or a pair of one (1)-way driveways wherein one (1) driveway is designed and appropriately signed to accommodate ingress movements and the other egress movements.
(2) Where parcel frontage is insufficient to provide a driveway meeting the minimum driveway width and radii, a shared driveway or other means of access may be required.
(3) Where the parcel is situated on a corner lot, one (1) access point on each street frontage may be permitted, provided there is a minimum of one-hundred (100) feet of frontage per side. No more than one (1) access point shall be permitted per side for parcels located on corner lots unless otherwise provided for within this chapter.
(4) Where the property has continuous frontage of over three hundred (300) feet and the applicant can demonstrate, using the Institute of Transportation Engineer’s Trip Generation Manual or another accepted reference, that a second access is warranted, the Planning Commission may allow an additional access point. Where possible, this access should be spaced according to the standards contained herein, located on a side street, shared with an adjacent property, and/or be designed to restrict one (1) or both left turn movements.
(5) Where the property has continuous frontage of over six hundred (600) feet, a maximum of three (3) driveways may be allowed, with at least one (1) such driveway being designed, constructed, and signed for right-turns-in and right-turns-out only.
(d) Shared Access; Joint Driveways; Frontage Roads; Parking Lot Connections; and Rear Service Drives.
(1) Shared use of access between two (2) or more property owners should be encouraged through use of driveways constructed along property lines, connecting parking lots and construction of on-site frontage roads, and rear service drives, particularly for the following: A. sites within one-quarter (1/4) mile of major intersections; B. sites having dual frontage; C. sites where frontage dimensions are less than three hundred (300) feet; D. locations with sight distance problems; and/or E. along roadway segments experiencing congestion or accidents. In such cases, shared access of some type may be the only access design allowed.
(2) In cases where a site is adjacent to an existing frontage road, a parking lot of a compatible use, or a rear service drive, a connection to the adjacent facility may be required by the Planning Commission.
(3) In cases where a site is adjacent to undeveloped property, the site must be designed and constructed to accommodate a future frontage road, parking lot connection, rear service drive, or other means of shared access as determined by the Planning Commission.
(4) The applicant shall provide the City with letters of agreement or access easements from all affected property owners.
(e) Unobstructed Sight Distance.
(1) No fence, wall, structure or planting shall be erected, established, or maintained on any lot which will obstruct the view of drivers in vehicles approaching an intersection of two roads or the intersection of a road and a driveway (see diagram). Fences, walls, structures, or plantings located in the triangular area described below shall not be permitted to obstruct cross- visibility between a height of thirty (30) inches and six (6) feet above the lowest point of the intersecting road(s).
Trees shall be permitted in the triangular area provided that limbs and foliage are trimmed so that they do not extend into the cross-visibility area or otherwise create a traffic hazard. Landscaping, except required grass or ground cover, shall not be located closer than three (3) feet from the edge of any driveway or road pavement within the triangular area.
(2) The unobstructed triangular area is described as follows:
The area formed at the corner intersection of two public right-of-way lines, the two (2) sides of the triangular area being 25 feet in length measured along abutting public rights-of-way lines, and third side being a line connecting these two sides, as illustrated in the following graphic:
The area formed at the corner intersection of a public right-of-way and a driveway, the two (2) sides of the triangular area being ten (10) feet in length measured along the edge of the driveway and five (5) feet in length measured along the right-of-way line and the third side being a line connecting these two sides.
(Res. 10-66A. Passed 4-19-10. Eff. 5-5-10.)
(f) Driveway Spacing From Intersections and Access Ramps.
(1) Driveway spacing from intersections shall be measured from the centerline of the driveway to the extended edge of the intersecting street's right-of-way line.
(2) In order to preserve intersection operations and safety, the minimum distance between a driveway and an intersecting street right-of-way shall be based on the following:
A. For locations in the vicinity of intersections experiencing congestion (peak hour operations below level of service “C” for one (1) or more movements) and/or a significant number of traffic accidents (five (5) or more annually), the Planning Commission may require that access be constructed along the property line furthest from the intersection.
B. For locations within two-hundred (200) feet of any signalized or four-way stop intersection, driveways shall be spaced a minimum of one-hundred-fifty (150) feet from the intersection. Where this spacing cannot be provided, driveways designed for “right-turn in/right-turn out only” movements may be allowed, with a minimum spacing of seventy-five (75) feet from the intersecting street right-of-way.
C. One-hundred (100) feet for locations not addressed by paragraph (f)(2)B. hereof.
D. Driveways shall be spaced a minimum of two-hundred (200) feet from the centerline of access ramps for Interstate 75.
(g) Driveway Spacing From Other Driveways.
(1) Driveway spacing from other driveways shall be measured from the centerline of each driveway at the point where it crosses the street right-of-way line.
(2) Minimum driveway spacing from other driveways along the same side of the street shall be determined based on posted speed limits along the parcel for each particular frontage, as follows:
Posted Speed Limit | Minimum Driveway Spacing |
25 mph | 100 feet |
30 mph | 125 feet |
35 mph | 150 feet |
40 mph | 185 feet |
45 mph | 230 feet |
50 mph | 275 feet |
55 mph | 350 feet |
(3) Driveways shall be directly aligned with those across the street or, where offset, the minimum driveway spacing from driveways across the street shall be one-hundred-fifty (150) feet, excluding when one (1) or both driveways are designed and signed for right-turn-in/right-turn-out only.
(h) Driveway Design; Channelized Driveways; Deceleration Lanes and Tapers; Bypass Lanes.
(1) Driveway designs. Driveways shall be designed to the standards of Wayne County, except where stricter standards are included herein or by the City’s driveway construction standards.
(2) Driveway width and radii.
A. The typical driveway design shall include one (1) ingress and one (1) egress lane, with a combined minimum throat width of twenty-five (25) feet and a maximum throat width of thirty (30) feet, measured from face to face of curb.
B. Wherever the Planning Commission determines that traffic volume or conditions may cause significant delays for traffic exiting left, two (2) exit lanes may be required.
C. For one-way paired driveway systems, each driveway shall be twenty (20) feet wide, measured perpendicularly.
D. In areas with pedestrian traffic, the exit and enter lanes may be separated by a median with a maximum width of ten (10) feet. Concrete sidewalks shall be continued and/or maintained across driveways.
E. Driveways shall be designed with a twenty-five (25) foot radii; thirty (30) foot radii shall be required where daily truck traffic is expected.
(3) Directional driveways, divided driveways and deceleration tapers. Directional driveways, divided driveways, and deceleration tapers and/or by-pass lanes may be required by the Planning Commission where they will reduce congestion and accident potential for vehicles accessing the proposed use or site. Right-turn tapers shall be a minimum of seventy-five (75) feet in length and at least eleven (11) feet wide.
(i) Design of Frontage Roads, Rear Service Drives and Parking Lot Connections. Frontage roads, rear service drives and drives connecting two (2) or more parking lots shall be constructed in accordance with the following standards:
(1) Pavement width shall be a maximum of thirty (30) feet, measured face of curb to face of curb; intersection approaches may be widened to thirty-nine (39) feet for a left turn lane.
(2) Frontage road access to public streets shall be spaced according to the standards of subsections (f) and (g) hereof.
(3) Frontage roads shall have a minimum setback of thirty (30) feet between the outer edge of pavement and the right-of-way line, with a minimum sixty (60) feet of uninterrupted queueing (stacking) space at the intersections.
(4) Parking along, or which backs into, a frontage road shall be prohibited.
(5) For properties which are currently developed or are adjacent to developed uses, and the standards of paragraphs (i)(1) through (4) hereof are determined by the Planning Commission to be too restrictive, frontage roads can be defined through parking lots by raised and/or painted islands, as shown, provided that at least every third end island is raised.
(Res. 98-340A. Passed 9-21-98.)