HomeMy WebLinkAbout2013-09-03 Planning Board Supplemental Materials (15) s
Ref: 6585
August 26, 2013
Mr. Joseph D. Peznola, P.E.
Principal- Branch Manager Marlborough
Hancock Associates, Inc.
315 Elm Street
Marlborough, MA 01752
Re: Traffic Engineering Peer Review
Proposed Day Care Center— 102 Peters Street(Route 133)
North Andover, Massachusetts
Dear Joe:
Vanasse & Associates, Inc. (VAI) has completed a review of the materials submitted on behalf of
Peters Street Associates, LLC(the"Applicant") in support of the proposed day care center to be located at
102 Peters Street (Route 133) in North Andover, Massachusetts (hereafter referred to as the "Project").
Our review focused on the following areas as they relate to the Project: i) vehicle and pedestrian access
and circulation; ii) Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) design standards;
iii) Town of North Andover Zoning requirements as they relate to access, parking and circulation; and
iv)accepted Traffic Engineering and Transportation Planning practices.
In support the Project, the Applicant submitted the following materials which are the subject of this
review:
➢ Special Permit — Site Plan Review Application, submitted by Peters Street Associates, LLC c/o
Jeffrey D. Sheehy for 102 Peters Street;
➢ Proposed Site Plan, 102 Peters Street, North Andover, Mass.; Andover Consultants Inc.;
December 13, 2011; last revised February 27, 2012;
➢ Traffic Impact Analysis, 102 Peters Street, North Andover, MA;
Dermot J. Kelly Associates, Inc.; December 28, 2011;
➢ Response to Comment, 102 Peters Street, North Andover, MA; Dermot J. Kelly Associates, Inc.;
August 14, 2013; and
➢ Parking Accumulation Study, 102 Peters Street,North Andover, MA; Dermot J. Kelly Associates,
Inc.; August 22, 2013.
In addition to the above materials, a parent/caregiver drop-off/pick-up sign-up sheet and a copy of a daily
sign in/out log sheet were also provided for review.
Mr. Joseph D. Peznola, P.E.
August 26, 2013
Page 2 of 8
VAI has completed a review of these materials and we have concluded that they were prepared in a
professional manner and generally following the applicable standards of care. As a result of our review,
we have determined that the proximity of the Project site driveway to the intersection of Turnpike Street
at Peters Street and the confining nature of the parking lot are not conducive to operation of the Project
site as a day care center. The ability of the Project site driveway and the parking lot to function in a safe
and efficient manner with respect to drop-off/pick-up operations is directly related to the efficiency for
vehicles to enter and exit the Project site, conditions which are exacerbated by vehicle queuing from the
Turnpike Street/Peters Street intersection and the confined nature of the parking lot.
The following summarizes our review of the materials submitted in support of the Project.
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
As proposed, the Project will entail the renovation of an existing commercial building located at
102 Peters Street(Route 133) in North Andover, Massachusetts, to accommodate a day care center with a
maximum of 39 students and four (4) staff members. The proposed day care center will operate
between7:00 AM and 6:00 PM, and will follow the North Andover public school schedule with respect to
holidays and school closings. The Project site encompass approximately 13,315 f square feet(sf) of land
and is bounded by Peters Street to the north; commercial properties and areas of open and wooded space
to the south and east; and areas of open and wooded space to the west. At present, the Project site
contains a 2,745 ± sf, one-story commercial building with a paved parking area that accommodates
parking for 11 vehicles, including one (1) handicapped accessible space. Access to the Project site will
continue to be provided by way of the existing driveway that intersects the south side of Peters Street
approximately 110 feet west of Turnpike Road(Route 114).
TRAFFIC IMPACT ANALYSIS
The traffic impact analysis submitted in support of the Project consisted of two memoranda prepared by
Dermot J. Kelly Associates, Inc. (DJK). The first document was dated December 28, 2011 and was
submitted to the Town in support of the construction of the 2,745 f sf commercial office building that
currently occupies the Project site. The second document was dated August 14, 2013 and provided
updated traffic counts and analyses specific to the proposed day care center that is the subject of the
current proposal for the Project site. This review has focused on the August 14, 2013.
General
The August 14, 2013 traffic assessment was prepared in a professional manner and generally following
the standards of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental
Affairs (EEA)/MassDOT Guidelines for Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Impact Statement
Traffic Impact Assessments (TIAs), and the standards of the Traffic Engineering and Transportation
Planning professions for the preparation of such reports. Although the August 14, 2013 assessment was
not signed and sealed (stamped) as required pursuant to Massachusetts General Law, VAI confirmed that
the assessment was prepared under the responsible charge of Mr. Dermot J. Kelly, P.E., PTOE,
Massachusetts P.E. License No. 31972.
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Mr.Joseph D. Peznola, P.E.
August 26, 2013
Page 3 of 8
Existim!Conditions
Study Area
The study area evaluated for the Project consisted of the Project site driveway and the intersection of
Turnpike Street and Peters Street.
Comment: The study area evaluated in the August 14, 2013 traffic assessment is sufficient to allow for
an assessment of Project-related impacts on the transportation infrastructure.
Traffic Volumes and Data Collection
Traffic volumes were collected at the Turnpike Street/Peters Street intersection on August 13, 2013 by
means of manual turning movement counts (TMCs) and vehicle classification counts during the weekday
morning (7:00 to 9:00 AM) and weekday evening (4:00 to 6:00 PM) peak periods. These time periods
were selected as they are representative of peak traffic volume conditions for both the Project and the
adjacent roadway network. A review of seasonal adjustment data available from MassDOT indicated that
traffic volume conditions during the month of August are representative of an "above average" condition
and, as such, no seasonal adjustment was required to be applied to the raw traffic count data.
Comment: The data collection and seasonal adjustment (none required) were completed in
accordance with standard Traffic Engineering and Transportation Planning practices, and
we are in agreement with the resulting values.
Pedestrian and Bicycle Facilities
Comment: An inventory of pedestrian and bicycle facilities within the study area was not conducted as
apart of the August 2013 assessment. A review of the roadway network serving the Project
site indicates that sidewalks are provided along the west side of Turnpike Street but are not
currently provided along Peters Street. A marked crosswalk is provided for crossing the
west leg of Peters Street at its intersection with Turnpike Street, with pedestrian traffic
signal equipment, timing and phasing provided as a part of the traffic signal system at the
Turnpike Street/Peters Street intersection.
Formal bicycle facilities are not currently provided within the immediate study area;
however, Turnpike Street appears to provide sufficient width (combined travel lane and
shoulder, where provided) to support bicycle travel in a shared travelled-way
configuration, with a number of the signalized intersections along the corridor providing
bicycle detection. Peters Street does not appear to provide sufficient width on a consistent
basis to support bicycle travel.
Public Transportation
Comment: An inventory of public transportation services within the study area was not conducted as a
part of the August 2013 assessment. The Town of North Andover is served by public
transportation services provided by the Merrimack Valley Regional Transit Authority
(MVRTA) fixed route bus service). MVRTA bus Routes 33, North Andover, and
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Mr.Joseph D. Peznola, P.E.
August 26, 2013
Page 4 of 8
Route 33A, North Andover Shuttle,provide service along Peters Street and Turnpike Street,
with Route 33A travelling along Peters Street and past the Project site to the Andover
YMCA.
Motor Vehicle Crash Summary
Comment: An evaluation of motor vehicle crashes occurring at the Turnpike Street/Peters Street
intersection was not completed as a part of the August 2013 assessment and would have
been helpful in evaluating the crash history along Peters Street proximate to the Project
site and the associated driveway. A review of the MassDOT motor vehicle crash history for
the intersection for the 3-year period 2009 through 2011 indicated a total of 20 crashes
were reported at the intersection, or approximately seven (7) crashes per year. The
majority of these crashes involved property damage only and were reported as angle or
rear-end type collisions, a pattern which is typical at signalized intersections. A further
review of the data indicated that seven (7) crashes involved a vehicle travelling eastbound
on Peters Street, two (2) of which occurred on the approach to Turnpike Street proximate
to the Project site.
Future Conditions
No-Build Conditions
Existing traffic volumes within the study area were projected to 2018, a 5-year planning horizon from the
base analysis year (2013) and consistent with state standards for the preparation of Traffic Impact
Assessments (TIAs). The Applicant's engineer increased the 2013 base traffic volumes by 12.7 percent
in order to account for general traffic growth and traffic that may be associated with other development
projects in the area. This increase is equivalent to an approximate 2.4 percent per year compounded
annual growth rate, which far exceeds that which has been experienced in the area (less than 1.0 percent
on average).
Comment: The Applicant's engineer did not indicate the basis for the establishment of the traffic
volume increase that was used; however, given that the study area is limited to the
Turnpike Street/Peters Street intersection and the fact that historic traffic growth in the
area has not exceeded 1.0 percent, the methodology used to develop the 2018 No-Build
condition traffic volumes results in a reasonable projection for planning purposes and to
evaluate Project-related impacts on the transportation system.
Build Conditions
Future conditions with the Project(2018 Build)were developed by estimating the traffic characteristics of
the Project and then assigning the resulting peak-hour traffic volumes onto the future condition roadway
network. In order to determine the traffic characteristics of the Project,the Applicant's engineer obtained
data from a similar day care operated by the Applicant in Tewksbury, Massachusetts, for the week of
August 12, 2012. This data consisted of the sign-in/out log for each day during the subject week and was
summarized in 15-minute intervals for the time period of 7:00 to 9:00 AM and 4:00 to 6:00 PM.
Attendance at the Tewksbury location during the review period ranged from 26 to 34 children. As such,
the Applicant's engineer expanded the data on a proportionate basis to estimate the number of trips that
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Mr.Joseph D. Peznola, P.E.
August 26, 2013
Page 5 of 8
would be associated with 39 children, the maximum number expected to be accommodated at the Project
site.
Based on the above methodology, it was estimated that the Project would generate approximately
180 vehicle trips on an average weekday(two-way traffic, or 90 vehicles entering and 90 exiting over the
operational day of the Project), with 40 vehicle trips expected during the weekday morning peak-hour
(21 vehicles entering and 19 exiting)and 28 vehicle trips expected during the weekday evening peak-hour
(13 vehicles entering and 15 exiting).
Traffic volumes associated with the Project were assigned onto the study area roadway network based on
a review of exiting prevailing traffic patterns at the Turnpike Street/Peters Street intersection. In general,
45 percent of Project-related traffic was oriented to/from the west on Peters Street, with 25 percent of
Project-related traffic assigned to/from the east on Peters Street; 5 percent to/from the north on
Turnpike Street; and 25 percent assigned to/from the south on Turnpike Street.
Comment: We are in agreement with the methodology that was used to develop the anticipated traffic
characteristics of the Project and the resulting values, and we are in general agreement
with the trip distribution pattern that was used to assign Project-related trips to the
roadway network.
A review of trip rates for a day care center provided by the Institute of Transportation
Engineers (ITE)l and assuming 39 students resulted in trip estimates for the Project that
were comparable to those resulting from the observed data from the Tewksbury facility.
Traffic Operations Analysis
In order to assess the potential impact of the Project on the transportation infrastructure and to evaluate
potential blockage of the Project site driveway by vehicle queues, a detailed traffic operations analysis
was performed for the intersection of Turnpike Street at Peters Street under 2013 Existing,2018 No-Build
(without the Project) and 2018 Build (with the Project) conditions. In brief, traffic operations are
described by six "levels of service" which are defined by letter grades from "A" through "F", with a
level-of-service (LOS) "A" representing the best operating conditions (average motorist delays of less
than 10 seconds and little or no apparent vehicle queuing) and a LOS "F" representing constrained
operating conditions (average motorist delays of 50 to 60 seconds or more and often with apparent vehicle
queuing). A LOS of"E" is representative of an intersection or traffic movement that is operating at its
design capacity, with a LOS of"D"typically representing the limit of acceptable traffic operations.
Based on this analysis, the Turnpike Street/Peters Street intersection was found to operate at an overall
level-of-service of "C" during the weekday morning peak-hour and at a level-of-service of "D"/"E"
during the weekday evening peak-hour under 2013 Existing, 2018 No-Build and 2018 Build conditions,
with a slight degradation in operating conditions shown to occur during the weekday evening peak-hour
as a result of the Project (change in level-of-service from "D" to "E" as a result of an increase in overall
intersection delay of approximately 1.3 seconds).
[Trip Generation, 91h Edition;Institute of Transportation Engineers;Washington,DQ 2011
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Mr.Joseph D. Peznola, P.E.
August 26, 2013
Page 6 of 8
Under all analysis conditions, the average vehicle queue on the Peters Street eastbound approach to the
intersection exceeded 250 feet and extended upward of over 625 feet during the peak periods, a condition
that would result in the Project site driveway being blocked on a regular and sustained basis, particularly
given that the approach is expected to operate at or over its design capacity, indicating that the queue will
not clear the approach on each cycle of the traffic signal and may exceed the predicted values.
Comment: The traffic operations analysis was completed using the appropriate methodologies and we
are in agreement with the analysis results. It is clear from the analysis and observations of
operating conditions at the Turnpike Street/Peters Street intersection that vehicle queues
on the Peters Street eastbound approach regularly block the driveway to the Project site,
the frequency and duration of which are expected to increase in the future as traffic
volumes at the intersection increase independent of the Project.
Recommendations
Based on the limited impact of the Project on the transportation infrastructure, the Applicant's engineer
focused their recommendations on potential measures to discourage vehicles on the Peters Street
approach to Turnpike Street from blocking the Project site driveway. These measures included installing
"Do Not Block Intersection" signs and pavement markings on Peters Street at the driveway and/or
modifying the pavement markings along Peters Street to provide a wider westbound travel lane to allow
motorists to by-pass a vehicle that may be waiting to turn left into the Project site.
In addition, the Applicant's engineer has indicated that the arrival and departure of students and staff will
be regulated in order to disperse traffic associated with the Project,with student drop-off/pick-up assigned
to defined 5 to 10 minute windows.
Comment: While we agree with the intent of the suggested improvements and the goal of assigned
drop-off/pick-up windows for students, the proximity of the driveway to Turnpike Street,
the existing and projected future traffic volumes at the intersection, and the operation of
the traffic signal system do not allow for such measures to be implemented in a practical
manner and leave no margin for flexibility should a parent/caregiver arrive early or late.
The left-turn movement from Turnpike Street northbound to Peters Street westbound
currently serves 232 vehicles during the weekday morning peak-hour and 188 vehicles
during the weekday evening peak-hour. A left-turn phase and arrow are provided for this
movement during which these vehicles proceed unimpeded from Turnpike Street onto
Peters Street while vehicles on Peters Street in front of the Project site are stopped at a red
signal indication. The presence of a single vehicle waiting to turn into the Project site
would cause vehicles to back into the intersection and increase the potential for rear-end
collisions given the combination of the volume of left-turning vehicles and the short
distance between Turnpike Street and the Project site driveway.
In addition, assuming that vehicles obey the "Do Not Block Intersection"provision, the
result would be sluggish intersection operations at the Turnpike Street/Peters Street
intersection resulting from the delay in traffic approaching the signal created by the gap in
the vehicle queue on the approach, a condition that could result in premature termination
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Mr.Joseph D. Peznola, P.E.
August 26, 2013
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of the "green" signal indication for the Peters Street eastbound approach and both
increased motorist delay and queuing.
A review of the Transportation Research Board (TRB) `Access Management Manual"
suggests that driveways on the approach side to a signalized intersection should be located
outside of the functional area of the intersection in order to allow sufficient offset to
accommodate vehicle queuing from the intersection and for the driveway to function in a
safe and efficient manner. The TRB recommends that the corner clearance for driveways
on an approach to a signalized intersection should at least be equal to the largest expected
vehicle queue on the approach for both safety and to maintain the operation of the traffic
signal system. It is apparent from the traffic operations analysis that vehicle queues on the
Peters Street eastbound approach regularly extend past the Project site driveway.
PARKING DEMAND ASSESSMENT
The Applicant's engineer conducted a parking accumulation study at a similar day care facility located at
1608 Bridge Street in Dracut, Massachusetts, on August 21, 2013 from 7:00 to 9:00 AM. It was noted
that the subject facility is similar to the Project with respect to the way in which the parking lot will
function during student drop-off/pick-up periods. During the observation period, it was noted that 32
parent/caregiver vehicles transporting 48 students and three (3) staff vehicles were observed to enter the
site between 7:00 and 9:00 AM. This level of activity resulted in a maximum of seven (7) vehicles
parked within the site at any one time during the observation period. Scaling the parking demand
observations to reflect the proposed student and staff levels at the Project would result in a peak parking
demand of five (5) to seven (7) vehicles for the Project, a demand which it was stated could be
accommodated by the 11 parking spaces located within the Project site.
Comment: A review of parking demand data for a day care facility published by the ITE2 indicates that
the peak parking demand period typically occurs during the afternoon pick-up period and
generally between 4:00 and 6:00 PM. For a 39 student day care facility, the calculated
85`h percentile parking demand (typical design value) using the ITE data is approximately
13 spaces, which exceeds the available parking at the Project site (11 spaces). Similar
calculations performed using the number of staff or the size of the facility as the
independent variables results in calculated parking demands of approximately 7 to 10
spaces, respectively. Based on the ITE parking demand data, which encompasses data
from between 29 and 39 observation sites, it would appear that the number of parking
spaces provided (11) would just meet the projected demand with little or no reserve
capacity.
Independent of the parking demands of the Project, the parking layout is confining in that it
only offers a single circulating aisle which does not afford the ability of vehicles to queue
to exit while maintaining unimpeded access to parking. It is clear from the traffic
operations analysis that vehicles will queue past the Project site driveway from the
Turnpike Street/Peters Street intersection as well as within the Project site. A vehicle
queue of 1 to 2 vehicles waiting to exit the Project site would limit the number of functional
2Parking Generation,4th Edition;Institute of Transportation Engineers;Washington,D.C.;2010,
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Mr. Joseph D. Peznola,P.E.
August 26, 2013
Page 8 of 8
parking spaces available within the Project site. The confined nature of the parking layout
combined with the short approach distance to Peters Street are not conducive to high
turnover parking events such as those that occur during drop-off/pick-up periods at a
school or day care.
SUMMARY
VAI has completed a review of the materials submitted on behalf of Peters Street Associates, LLC in
support of the proposed day care center to be located at 102 Peters Street(Route 133) in North Andover,
Massachusetts. Our review focused on the following areas as they relate to the Project: i) vehicle and
pedestrian access and circulation; ii) MassDOT design standards; iii) Town of North Andover Zoning
requirements as they relate to access, parking and circulation; and iv) accepted Traffic Engineering and
Transportation Planning practices
Based on our review, we have determined that the proximity of the Project site driveway to the
intersection of Turnpike Street at Peters Street and the confining nature of the parking lot are not
conducive to operation of the Project site as a day care center. The ability of the Project site driveway
and the parking lot to function in a safe and efficient manner with respect to drop-off/pick-up operations
is directly related to the efficiency for vehicles to enter and exit the Project site, conditions which are
exacerbated by vehicle queuing from the Turnpike Street/Peters Street intersection and the confined
nature of the parking lot.
This concludes our review of the materials that have been submitted to date in support of the Project. If
you should have any questions regarding our review, please feel free to contact me.
Sincerely,
W, A SUPTOE, .Jirk, P. ,
Principal
JSD/jsd
cc: File
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