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City of Lino Lakes Legacy at Woods Edge — Traffic Operations Analysis February 11, 2004 Page 4 Drive. The average queues reported for the left and right turn lane are 144 and 222 feet respectively. The animation showed that this queue is not typically a "standing" queue as it cleared quickly the majority of the time but at times over the analysis hour it did block Village Drive. A review of the volume to capacity ratios and critical lane volumes also showed acceptable operation of the Lake Drive/Town Center Parkway intersection. 2010 Build This analysis assumes the proposed interim geometric improvements and traffic signals with coordinated timings at each of the three intersections. The Northbound I -35W entrance ramp was realigned to oppose the exit ramp. The LOS for the approaches at each of the intersections was LOS D or better, however, the other tools used to measure traffic operations show 2010 to be the date of failure. The primary reason for the failure at this date is the lack of capacity on Lake Drive. Due to the existing bridge over I -35W, Lake Drive traffic is forced into a single lane in each direction. The Town Center Parkway and Northbound I -35W ramp intersections experience queue and capacity problems because of the need for additional capacity on Lake Drive. As part of the analysis the signal timings and coordination were optimized, however this could not mitigate the capacity deficiency on Lake Drive. The forecast traffic volumes on Lake Drive and the I -35W exit ramps must compete for signal time. At the intersection of Lake Drive and the Northbound I -35W ramps, the exit ramp and the northbound through and right -turn lanes have maximum queues that exceed proposed storage. Specifically, the Northbound I -35W exit ramp experiences a maximum queue that extends into the deceleration area for the exit ramp. This is not acceptable to Mn/DOT or the Federal Highway Administration due to the potential to impact freeway operations. In addition the volume to capacity ratios for the left and right turn lanes on the exit ramp — 0.85 and 0.95 respectively — are nearing 1.0, which indicates capacity problems. The approach queues for northbound Lake Drive at this intersection extend to the Town Center Parkway intersection and the animation shows that it will interfere with intersection operations. The northbound through lane has a volume to capacity ratio of 1.02, which indicates capacity problems. The critical lane volumes at this intersection also show the potential for a capacity problem as they are near volume limits for acceptable operations. Meeting with Mn/DOT A meeting was held January 29, 2004 with the Mn/DOT Area Engineer and Mn/DOT traffic and freeway modeling staff to review the analysis and results discussed above. Mn/DOT staff did not request any additional analysis. The need for an Interchange Access Request (IAR) was discussed due to the proposed realignment of the Northbound I -35W entrance ramp with the exit ramp. An IAR is required by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) if a new interchange is proposed or if an existing interchange configuration is proposed for modification (i.e. converting a diamond interchange to a cloverleaf). The Mn/DOT Area Engineer contacted the local FHWA representative regarding this issue. FHWA stated that an IAR would not be necessary. FHWA also stated that documentation must be provided that shows . traffic will not back up from the ramps onto mainline I -35W and that FHWA needs to review the modeling results.