Roadway System

Please review the content below, including the identified gaps and deficiencies of the existing system. The information below will provide context to support the exhibits to the right. Each exhibit includes a comment box for you to include your feedback. In addition, you may also provide comments via the roadway interactive map.

Roadway System Interactive Map - Click Here!

Guiding Questions

1. Did we miss anything with the inventory or does anything need further clarification?
2. Do the text, tables, and maps clearly present the information?
3. Do you have any questions, comments, or concerns about the content?

Jurisdiction

Streets within Independence are owned and operated by ODOT and the City. Each jurisdiction is responsible for determining the functional classification of the streets, defining major design and multimodal features, and approving construction and access permits. Coordination is required among the jurisdictions to ensure that the streets are planned, operated, maintained, and improved to safely meet public needs. The following exhibits illustrate the jurisdiction of streets within Independence.

Functional Classification

A street’s functional classification defines its role in the transportation system and reflects desired operational and design characteristics such as right-of-way requirements, design speed, pavement widths, pedestrian and bicycle features, and driveway (access) spacing standards. The following exhibits illustrate the functional classification of streets within Independence. The following provides a description of each functional classification per the 2007 Independence TSP.

• Major Arterials primarily serve regional travel passing through an area as well as local trips entering and exiting and area. Arterials generally emphasize mobility and therefore, land access should be managed to protect the mobility function of the street.
• Minor Arterials also serve through traffic, but they place more emphasis on land access and offer a lower level of traffic volume and mobility than major arterials. However, mobility is still the primary function of the street and should be preserved.
• Collectors provide links between an area or neighborhood and the arterial system. They provide land uses with the same level of access as local streets and they provide direct routes to many destinations.
• Local Streets provide access to land uses and are protected from through traffic by arterials and collectors. While connectivity is encouraged for all streets, through traffic movement is not the intended purpose of a local street.

Roadway Characteristics

Roadway characteristics were reviewed to establish a baseline for evaluating existing traffic conditions and developing context-sensitive solutions to address potential gaps and deficiencies. The characteristics include number and width of travel lanes, posted speed limits, and more. Information on pavement condition is provided below. Information on other roadway characteristics is provided in Tech Memo #3A.

Pavement Condition

The City of Independence conducted a pavement condition study of the 27.6 miles of roadway managed by the City Public Works Department in 2015. The study included a walking inspection using a qualitative rating system for pavement conditions along City facilities. The system rates facilities as good, fair, and poor. Based on data provided by the City, approximately 56% of City streets are rated in good condition, 22% are fair, and 22% are poor. The following exhibits illustrates pavement conditions in Independence.

Traffic Operations Analysis

The traffic operations analysis identifies how the study intersections operate under existing traffic conditions during the weekday p.m. peak hour – the weekday p.m. peak hour was selected as a basis for the analysis given that it generally represents the most critical time period throughout the day. However, other peak hours may be more critical in some locations, such as near schools. The following exhibits illustrates the results of the intersection operations analysis.

Traffic Safety Analysis

The traffic safety analysis identifies potential safety issues throughout the City based on the five most recent years of crash data available (January 1, 2013 through December 31, 2017). The following exhibit illustrate the location, severity, and type of crashes that occurred within the study area over the five-year period. Based on the data, a total of 269 crashes occurred in Independence, of which one resulted in a fatality, 144 resulted in injuries, and 124 resulted in property-damage-only.

Existing Gaps and Deficiencies

The inventory and existing conditions analysis identify gaps and deficiencies in the transportation system that can be addressed through the TSP update. The following summarizes the existing gaps and deficiencies in the roadway system:

• There are inconsistencies in how jurisdictions classify streets in Independence
• There are two arterial and collector streets that have poor pavement conditions:
• OR 51-Monmouth Street from western UGB to Main Street
• Main Street from F Street to River Road
• Four intersection are approaching or exceeding their respective mobility standards and targets:
• 2. OR 51/Polk Street – approaching target
• 5. Main Street/Monmouth Street – approaching target
• 9. Monmouth Street/Gun Club Road – approaching target
• 18. S Main Street/River Road S – exceeds standard
• Four intersections and two roadway segments have have potential safety issues:
• OR 51/Polk Street
• Hoffman Road/16th Street
• S Main Street/River Road S
• OR 51-Monmouth St from west city limits to Gun Club Road
• 4th Street from OR 51-Monmouth Street to Spruce Street