Speed Limit Review Study - Trent Hills

Speed Limit Review Study

Municipality of Trent Hills

D.M. Wills Project No. 13-4475

February 2014

Speed Limit Review Study Municipality of Trent Hills

D.M. Wills Associates Limited Page 1 Project Number 13-4475

Table of Contents

1.0 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................... 3

2.0 BACKGROUND ................................................................................................................... 3

3.0 SPEED AND SAFETY .............................................................................................................. 4

4.0 SETTING SPEED LIMITS .......................................................................................................... 4

5.0 THE ENGINEERING APPROACH – ROAD RISK METHOD .............................................................. 5

6.0 THE CANADIAN GUIDELINES FOR ESTABLISHING POSTED SPEED LIMITS ........................................ 5

7.0 EVALUATION CRITERIA ......................................................................................................... 6

8.0 ROADS UNDER STUDY .......................................................................................................... 7

9.0 FIELD REVIEW AND DATA COLLECTION ................................................................................... 7

10.0 ANALYSIS AND RESULTS ....................................................................................................... 8

11.0 CONCLUSIONS ..................................................................................................................11

List of Tables

Table 1: Rural Roads Under Study ..…………..…………………………….………………….. 7

Table 2: Recommended Speed Limits …....………………………………………………….. 9

List of Exhibits Exhibit 1: Key Map …………………………………………..………………………………………. 2

List of Appendices

Appendix A: Rural Roads Under Study Appendix B: Evaluation Criteria Appendix C: TAC Speed Reports Appendix D: Map: Recommended Posted Speed



Exhibit 1: Key Map

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1.0 Introduction

The Municipality of Trent Hills retained D.M. Wills Associates Ltd. (Wills) to undertake a speed limit assessment on select roads within the rural road network. The objective of this study is to produce a set of recommendations for updating existing speed. This report documents the background and context of the study; the approach, methodology, supporting data used for this study and conclusion supported by the analysis.

2.0 Background

The Municipality has identified the need to review selected roads within its rural road network, consisting of approximately 100 km for this study, in order to determine the appropriate speed limits on these roads. The Municipality of Trent Hills is defined as local municipality under the Ontario Highway Traffic Act (Act). Under this Act any roadway within the Municipality, without a signed speed limit, is governed by the statutory speed limits set out in Part IX of the Act. Prior to the latest revision of the Act, a statutory speed limit of 50 km/h generally applied within the built-up areas of a municipality, and 80 km/h applied elsewhere. Statutory speed limits are, in effect, “default” speed limits. They apply universally under a given set of circumstances, and do not require the presence of signs to be enforceable. Accordingly, speed limit signs were not required to impose an 80 km/h speed limit on the Municipality’s rural roads. Statutory speed limits were originally conceived as a means of setting uniform speed limits based on circumstances (e.g. urban area versus rural area), to economize on the need to sign speed limits on all roadways at regular intervals. However, the effect of the latest revisions to the Act and other statutes is to make the statutory speed limit 50 km/h on all roads (urban and rural) within local municipalities. This, in turn, has required municipalities wishing to establish speed limits other than the statutory 50 km/h, to amend posted speeds through by-laws and install appropriate signing.



Currently, all roads within the Municipality of Trent Hills are assigned the default of 50 km/h speed limit as determined by the Highway Traffic Act. A 50 km/h statutory speed limit on all rural roads is not necessary appropriate. Prior to revisions in the Act, many of these roadways functioned acceptably, and as intended, under an 80 km/h statutory speed limit. From the Municipality’s perspective and under the Act, the Municipality is empowered to impose alternative speed limits to the statutory 50 km/h through by-law. A different speed limit than the statutory will require the installation of speed limit signs.

3.0 Speed and Safety

Speed limits are a necessary component in achieving both mobility and road safety objectives. Appropriate speed limits serve to minimize the difference in speeds between vehicles in the traffic stream. On two-lane rural roads, this minimizes queuing behind slower traffic, following too closely, and the perceived need for potentially-risky overtaking. For traffic entering from driveways and crossing roadways, speed consistency amongst conflicting vehicles makes the task of choosing acceptable gaps in traffic easier. In this manner, appropriate speed limits serve to reduce the likelihood of collisions occurring. That said, crash severity, when collisions do occur, is generally a function of speed and the resultant collision forces, particularly when a vulnerable road user is involved.

4.0 Setting Speed Limits

Speed limits are set to inform motorists of appropriate driving speeds under favorable conditions. Drivers are expected to reduce speeds under certain conditions (i.e., poor visibility, adverse weather, congestion, warning signs, or presence of bicyclists and pedestrians). Legislation and statutes generally reflect this requirement. All speed control regulations provide the legal basis for adjudication and sanctions for violations of the law. Municipalities may also post advisory speed signs, which do not have the force of law but warn motorists of suggested safe speeds for specific conditions at particular locations (i.e. a sharp curve or intersection approach).



The primary purpose of the speed limit is to advise drivers of the maximum reasonable and safe operating speed under favorable conditions. It provides a basis for enforcement and ought to be fair in the context of traffic law. Methodologies for setting speed limits are designed to result in recommended speed limits that:

Are related to crash risk; Provide a reasonable basis for enforcement; Are fair in the context of traffic law; and Are accepted as reasonable by a majority of road users.

Methodologies are generally applicable on all road types and capable of being implemented with existing resources.

5.0 The Engineering Approach – Road Risk Method

One of the methods of setting speed limits using an engineering approach is the Road Risk Method in which the speed limit is determined by the risk associated with the physical design of the road and the expected traffic conditions. The basis of this methodology is to set the speed limit according to the function or classification of the road (which also tends to dictate the design of the road), and then to adjust the speed limit based on the relative risk introduced by various road and roadside design features.

6.0 The Canadian Guidelines for Establishing Posted Speed Limits

The Canadian Guidelines for Establishing Posted Speed Limits was developed by the Transportation Association of Canada (TAC Guidelines) and were developed to provide guidance and to enhance consistency in the evaluation of posted speed limits. The guidelines were developed through the review of current domestic and international practices, technical documentation and testing. The TAC Guidelines are based on the road risk method which is primarily based on the evaluation of risk associated with the physical characteristics of a roadway. The specific road classes considered are freeways, expressways, arterials, collectors and locals. These road classes are consistent with the Geometric Design Guide for Canadian Roads.



The fundamental concept of the evaluation methodology is to identify the ideal speed according to the nature of land use (urban/rural), laning, median separation and road classification. For municipal arterial, collector and local roads, the ideal speed is determined based on the typical functions of these roads and typical public expectations under minimal risk conditions. Then, a systematic evaluation of risk related to geometry and traffic criteria is carried out. A recommended posted speed limit is then established according to the level of risk. The higher the level of risk associated with the roadway’s physical characteristics, the lower the resulting posted speed limit.

7.0 Evaluation Criteria

The evaluation criteria are related to the physical and road-user characteristics of the roadway, as follows:

a. Horizontal alignment b. Vertical alignment c. Average lane width d. Roadside hazards e. Pedestrian exposure f. Cyclist exposure g. Pavement surface h. Number of intersections with public roads i. Number of intersections with private access driveways j. Number of interchanges k. On-street parking

For each evaluation criterion, a risk level that appropriately matches prevailing conditions is identified. In general, three levels of risk (higher, medium and lower) have been defined for each evaluation criterion. An automated spreadsheet is provided with the TAC Guidelines and was used for the analysis. The spreadsheet includes all the factors to be evaluated. Each factor is assigned a risk level; once all factors are considered, a final total risk score is assigned and a resulting recommended posted speed limit is assigned. See Appendix B “Evaluation Criteria” for details.



8.0 Roads Under Study

The Municipality of Trent Hills provided a list of rural roads for this study. These roads are classified either as collectors or locals. The roads included in the study are shown in the table below:

StatutoryOrder Road From - To Length Major Minor Local Speed

1 13th Conc. E Water St. - 10th Line West 6.1 X 50 km/h2 10th Line W 13th Conc. - Cty #30 3.1 X 50 km/h3 8th Conc. W Cty #25 - Cty #45 6.1 X 50 km/h4 Gravel Rd Cty #25 - Platt Rd. 2.3 X 50 km/h5 Norham Rd. Cty #29 - Platt Rd. 3.2 X 50 km/h6 5th Line West Cty #30 - End 3.0 X 50 km/h7 Wingfield Rd. Cty #8 - Cty #38 8.5 X 50 km/h8 Rylstone Rd. Cty #38 - 13th Line E 4.5 X 50 km/h9 13th Line E Rylstone Rd. - Cty #50 6.0 X 50 km/h10 Bannon Rd. Cty # 35 - 5th Line W 2.5 X 50 km/h11 Godolphin Rd. Cty 35 - Percy St. 10.5 X 50 km/h12 Mahoney Rd. 5th Line W - Skinkle Rd. 2.8 X 50 km/h13 Skinkle Rd. N Mahoney Rd. - 6th Conc. E 1.7 X 50 km/h14 6th Conc. E Godolphin Rd. - Skinkle Rd. 3.9 X 50 km/h15 Burnbrae Rd. Roscoe Ave. - Wingfield 10.0 X 50 km/h16 11th Line W Cty #50 - Cty #30 4.8 X 50 km/h17 Ward Rd. 8th Conc. - Cty #24 2.3 X 50 km/h18 9th Conc. W Cty #45 - Baxter Rd. 2.4 X 50 km/h19 2nd Conc. E Cty #30 - Platt Rd. 4.2 X 50 km/h20 8th Line E Petherick Rd. - Cty #38 3.6 X 50 km/h21 Sandy Flats Cambpell Rd. - Linton Rd. 4.2 X 50 km/h22 7th Line E Petherick Rd. - Cty #38 3.8 X 50 km/h23 Conc. Road 3 W Cambpell Rd. - Linton Rd. 7.5 X 50 km/h

Collector

Table 1: Rural roads under study

9.0 Field Review and Data Collection

As per the TAC Guidelines, requirements for this study included road classification, road function, land use, as well as physical and road-user characteristics as described in Section 7 of this report.



Wills’ team conducted site reviews on December 5th, 2013 and January 9th, 2014 to collect the information required for this analysis. The field review was conducted by driving the rural road network and making note of the physical characteristics of the roadway and surrounding land uses. Driving the roads provided opportunity to identify potential issues/hazards first hand, and to identify the appropriate operative speed according to the reviewers judgment, to be used as comparison with the results provided by the TAC methodologies. Judgment on the operative speed is recorded in the automated sheet as “Prevailing Speed – 85th percentile”, thus the information provided in this entry does not represent the 85th percentile. Given the relatively low traffic volumes on many of these roads, establishing an 85th percentile speed study is not appropriate due to the low sample sizes. The information included in this entry does not affect the calculations of the TAC methodologies but provides a benchmark with which to compare the results.

10.0 Analysis and Results

Following the field review and data collection, the automated TAC spreadsheet tool was populated to provide a recommended posted speed limit based on the TAC Guidelines methodologies. Results were then compared against the benchmarks values from field observation. In general, the recommended posted speed for the road sections under study were within the range assessed during field review. Following the initial analysis conducted using the TAC Guidelines, and consistent with the recommendations of the Guidelines, additional analysis was conducted to allow for consideration of special circumstances, local knowledge, and engineering judgment in the process of setting speed limits. Four (4) of the roads under study were selected for additional review due to difference between the results of the TAC methodologies and Wills’ field assessment. Four roads, Bannon Road, Mahoney Road, Skinkle Road and Concession Road 6 East were classified as major collector roads which as per the initial TAC Guidelines assessment yielded a recommended posted speed of 70 km/h. However, during our field review, the operative speed for Banon Road, Mahoney Road and Skinkle Road was assessed at approximately 55 km/h to 60 km/h. The effect of the hierarchy in the road classification (major collector or minor collector) plays an important role in the calculation under the TAC methodology. In coordination with the Municipal Staff, it was determined that



these roads would more appropriately be considered minor collectors for purposes of this study. The Concession Road 6 East road classification was also revised to be minor collector due to the cyclist activity known in this road section. The updated classification provides a recommended posted speed of 60 km/h which is more in line with the field assessment and also with the natural use/share of the road. For some roads, the recommended speed limit is not necessarily applicable for the entire length of the road, such as when a rural road approaches an urban/sub urban area. Although the recommended speed is set to a certain value, consideration is taken to reduce the speed at some sections. Such is the case, as an example, for Concession Road 13 East were the recommended posted speed limit is 70 km/h with a reduction to 50 km/h in the urban area at the west end of the road section. As detailed previously, the assessment of speed limits considers road characteristics and roadside hazards inherent to the road segment under study. Each of the roads under study generally exhibited sideslopes steeper than 4 horizontal : 1 vertical throughout its length; some road segments also had locations of unprotected high fills. A sideslopes steeper than 4:1 is considered non-recoverable and is identified as a possible hazard, regardless of the speed limit. As per the TAC guidelines, these roads where assessed as “Higher Risk” under the roadside hazards category. In considering an increase to posted speed, it is important to ensure that additional warning signs (sharp curves, etc.) are placed in conjunction with the revised speed signing, as warranted. The following table provides a summary of the recommended changes to the legislative speed limits: .



Statutory RecommendedOrder Road From - To Length Major Minor Local Speed Speed Limit Comments

1 13th Conc. E Water St. - 10th Line West 6.1 X 50 km/h 70 km/h Reduce to 50 km/h at west end

2 10th Line W 13th Conc. - Cty #30 3.1 X 50 km/h 70 km/h

3 8th Conc. W Cty #25 - Cty #45 6.1 X 50 km/h 70 km/h

4 Gravel Rd Cty #25 - Platt Rd. 2.3 X 50 km/h 70 km/h Reduce to 50 km/h betweenNewman Dr. and Platt Rd.

5 Norham Rd. Cty #29 - Platt Rd. 3.2 X 50 km/h 70 km/h

6 5th Line West Cty #30 - End 3.0 X 50 km/h 70 km/h Reduce to 50 km/hWest of Mahoney Rd.

7 Wingfield Rd. Cty #8 - Cty #38 8.5 X 50 km/h 70 km/h

8 Rylstone Rd. Cty #38 - 13th Line E 4.5 X 50 km/h 70 km/h

9 13th Line E Rylstone Rd. - Cty #50 6.0 X 50 km/h 70 km/h

10 Bannon Rd. Cty # 35 - 5th Line W 2.5 X 50 km/h 60 km/h

11 Godolphin Rd. Cty 35 - Percy St. 10.5 X 50 km/h 70 km/h Reduce to 50 km/hSouth of Concession Rd 6 East.

12 Mahoney Rd. 5th Line W - Skinkle Rd. 2.8 X 50 km/h 60 km/h

13 Skinkle Rd. N Mahoney Rd. - 6th Conc. E 1.7 X 50 km/h 60 km/h

14 6th Conc. E Godolphin Rd. - Skinkle Rd. 3.9 X 50 km/h 60 km/h

15 Burnbrae Rd. Roscoe Ave. - Wingfield 10.0 X 50 km/h 70 km/h Reduce to 50 km/hWest of Loucks Rd.

16 11th Line W Cty #50 - Cty #30 4.8 X 50 km/h 60 km/h

17 Ward Rd. 8th Conc. - Cty #24 2.3 X 50 km/h 60 km/h

18 9th Conc. W Cty #45 - Baxter Rd. 2.4 X 50 km/h 60 km/h

19 2nd Conc. E Cty #30 - Platt Rd. 4.2 X 50 km/h 60 km/h Reduce to 50 km/hfor the last 800 m east end.

20 8th Line E Petherick Rd. - Cty #38 3.6 X 50 km/h 60 km/h

21 Sandy Flats Cambpell Rd. - Linton Rd. 4.2 X 50 km/h 60 km/h

22 7th Line E Petherick Rd. - Cty #38 3.8 X 50 km/h 60 km/h

23 Conc. Rd 3 West Cty #25 - Alnwick Rd. 7.5 X 50 km/h 60 km/h

Change in road classification from major collector to minor collector roadway

Collector

Table 2: Recommended Speed Limits



11.0 Conclusions

Based on the analysis undertaken through this review, and the subsequent conclusions, it is recommended that the Town consider the revisions to current posted and/or legislated speed limits as detailed in Table 2. Respectfully Submitted; Martin Asurza, P.Eng. Transportation Engineer

Appendix A MAP: Roads Under Study

Appendix B Evaluation Criteria

Appendix C TAC Speed Reports

Appendix D Speed Reports Summary Table

Appendix E Map: Recommended Posted Speed

Documents

Speed Limit Review Study - Trent Hills