07-23-08 Council Agenda - Laserfiche WebLink

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TRANSPORTATION Introduction The transportation system has played a key role in the pace and location of development in the City. The most significant element of Little Canada's transportation system is the existence of a number of State and County arterial roadways. The basic function of Little Canada's roadway system is to support the metropolitan highway system. As such, the majority of streets in the City function as urban collectors or minor or principal arterials. Supportive to this framework is the network of local streets. Ultimately, it is these local streets that will have to be designed and improved to handle Little Canada's growth and redevelopment. Existing Transportation System Roadways Roadways are classified on the basis of which level of government owns and has jurisdiction over them. In Little Canada, roadways are under the jurisdiction of MnDOT, Ramsey County or the City. The functional classification system used in the City of Little Canada conforms to the Metropolitan Council standards. The primary classifications and brief definitions are as follows: • Principal arterials — freeways and some expressways • `A' Minor arterials — eligible to compete for federal funding, regionally important highways, emphasis on mobility as opposed to access. These are further broken down into four sub - categories: • Reliever: provide relief for interstate highways • Augmenter: supplement areas that don't have interstate highways • Expander: connections between developing areas • Connector: connections between rural towns • `B' Minor Arterials — not eligible for federal funding. Connect major traffic generators with emphasis on mobility as opposed to access • Collectors — provide connections between neighborhoods and from neighborhoods to minor business concentrations • Local Streets The functional classification system is a roadway network that distributes traffic from neighborhood streets to collector streets, then to arterials and ultimately the metropolitan highway system. Roads are placed into categories based on the degree to which they provide access to adjacent land. Functional classification is a traditional cornerstone of transportation planning. Within this approach, roads are located and designed to perform their designated function. The Functional Roadway Classification Map shows the existing functional classification of roadways in Little Canada. City of Little Canada — 2030 Comprehensive Plan 35