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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC - Pathways School Checklist February 5, 2024 TJW ENGINEERING, INC. TRAFFIC ENGINEERING& TRANSPORTATION PLANNING CONSULTANTS Mr. Kent Mussell MUSSELL CONSTRUCTION, INC. PO BOX 3304 Nampa, ID 83642 SUBJECT: 965 E Ustick Road Pathways in Education Focused Traffic Study, City of Merdian, Idaho Dear Mr. Mussell, TJW Engineering, Inc. (TJW)is pleased to submit this Focused Traffic Study for the proposed project located at 965 E Ustick Road in the City of Merdian. The proposed project anticipates the conversion of an existing structure to an 8,000 s.f. charter school land use (Pathways in Education or"PIE").A site plan and a draft of the project narrative are included for reference. The purpose of this memorandum is to respond to the checklist items taken from Idaho Code 67-6519(3). Proposed Project The proposed site is located at 965 E Ustick Road and includes the conversion of the existing vacant residential land use site to an 8,000 s.f. charter school land use.The proposed project will be utilized as a self-study program, hence, daily schedules are broken down generally into 2-hour appointments for testing and tutoring only.Although the students start at the same time, either 8AM, 10AM, or 1 PM.The first portion of their session would be for taking tests and the remainder of their time is set for tutoring. While all students would utilize the testing period of each session, they may not remain the entire time for the tutoring session, so the duration of their stay would vary anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour and 45 minutes. Minimal overlap is expected between ingress and egress activity, and any occurrence would only be for a short period of time before each session begins. The proposed project is currently considering two access alternatives to Ustick Road for construction. The first alternative will construct two driveways, separating the ingress and egress to/from the site. The ingress-only driveway would be located east of the project and, the egress driveway would be located to the west. The second alternative will construct one full access driveway located west of the project. Responses to the checklist items would include both alternatives where applicable. A schematic of the proposed project is shown on the following page. 1123 12th Avenue Road,#425 1 Nampa, Idaho 83686 1 t:(208)922-7199 1 www.tjwengineering.com Mr. Mussell 965 E Ustick Rd Pathways in Education Focused Traffic Study February 5, 2024 Page 2 1 - � 7 m rN I $ - One Driveway Alternative Two Driveway Alternative Full Access One Ingress Only and One Egress Only Access Checklist Items-Idaho Code 67-6519(3) Per Title 67, Chapter 65 of the State of Idaho Statues, code 67-6519 is applicable for the proposed charter school project. The code states: When considering an application that relates to a public-school facility, the commission shall specifically review the application for the effect it will have on increased vehicle, bicycle and pedestrian volumes on adjacent roads and highways. To ensure that the state highway system or the local highway system can satisfactorily accommodate the proposed school project, the commission shall request the assistance of the Idaho transportation department if state highways are affected, or the local highway district with jurisdiction if the affected roads are not state highways. The Idaho transportation department, the appropriate local highway jurisdiction, or both as determined by the commission, shall review the application and shall report to the commission on the following issues as appropriate:the land use master plan; school bus plan; access safety, pedestrian plan, crossing guard plan; barriers between highways and school, location of school zone, need for flashing beacon; need for traffic control signal, anticipated future improvements, speed on adjacent highways, traffic volumes on adjacent highways, effect upon the highway's level of service, need for acceleration or deceleration lanes, internal traffic circulation, anticipated development on surrounding undeveloped parcels, zoning in the vicinity, access control on adjacent highways, required striping and signing modifications,funding of highway improvements to accommodate development, proposed highway projects in the vicinity, and any other issues as may be considered appropriate to the particular application. TJW Engineering, Inc. Pathways School Checklist Report 02052024 Mr. Mussell 965 E Ustick Rd Pathways in Education Focused Traffic Study February 5, 2024 Page 3 The aforementioned code has been interpreted to include the following checklist items to be responded to satisfactorily as part of the review process for the proposed project. 1. Land use master plan Per the City of Meridian, the future land use for the site is R-8 medium density residential. 2. School bus plan Per the Project Narrative provided in the appendix, no school buses will be in operation as part of this project, no school bus plan is anticipated. 3. Access safety For both alternatives, since both egress movements would take place at the westerly driveway, and based on the sight visibility calculations of 530'for left turning maneuvers and 415'for right turning maneuvers, adequate sight visibility will be available for vehicles exiting the site. Especially considering the visibility vertex may be reduced as vehicles often encroach into the roadway prior to making a left/right maneuver, adequate sight visibility would be available. 4. Pedestrian plan The school anticipates a range of 90-120 high-school aged students and 12 staff members throughout the day. Pedestrian activity is anticipated to be minimal, especially when considering that majority of students would be dropped-off/picked-up. Should any pedestrian activity occur, it would utilize the existing pedestrian facilities adjacent to the site. With the two-driveway alternative, vehicles would enter the site and queue along the east side of the building as the pick-up/drop-off activity would occur adjacent to the building entrance located at the south side of the building. This circulation would also help reduce pedestrian activity and minimize pedestrian vs. vehicle conflicts within the parking area of the project site. Additional queue related information is provided in the attached Kittelson &Associates Technical Memorandum dated February 1, 2024. 5. Crossing guard plan The school anticipates a range of 90-120 high-school aged students and 12 staff members throughout the day. Based on the older age of the students, and the large potential that most students will be dropped off or driven to the site, a crossing guard, and crossing guard plan, is unlikely to be necessary. TJW Engineering, Inc. Pathways School Checklist Report 02052024 Mr. Mussell 965 E Ustick Rd Pathways in Education Focused Traffic Study February 5, 2024 Page 4 6. Barriers between highways and school There will be a privacy fence that bounds the east, west and south property limits of the site, no barriers will be present between the highway and the school. There will be an approximately 30- foot setback from the back of sidewalk to the edge of the nearest. As mentioned previously, it should be noted that the school would service high-school aged students. 7. Location of school zone School zone signage and pavement markings are currently not present. The appropriate school zone designation signs and pavement markings should be installed as part of the project. School zone designation should be per MUTCD. 8. Need for flashing beacon Flashing beacons are not anticipated due to the minimal pedestrian activity expected. Users of the site are expected to ride their bikes or be dropped off, hence, they will utilize the existing infrastructure. In addition, a flashing beacon exists approximately a quarter-mile west of the site, and a quarter-mile east is the signalized intersection at Locust Grove. 9. Need for traffic control signal A traffic control signal is not anticipated due to the minimal pedestrian and vehicular activity expected. The driveway configuration will allow for full ingress and egress movements to/from the site (right-in/out and left-in/out movements). A flashing beacon exists approximately a quarter-mile west of the site, and a quarter-mile east is the signalized intersection at Locust Grove. As for project related traffic controls, at a minimum, a STOP sign will be placed at the driveway of the project site. 10. Anticipated future improvements There are no future improvements anticipated for the project with the exception of the school zone related modifications to Ustick Road. 11. Speed on adjacent highways Current posted speed limit on E Ustick Road is 40mph. 12. Traffic volumes on adjacent highways Per latest available traffic count data on the ACHD website (October 2021), Ustick Road east of Meridian Road has the following traffic volumes: TJW Engineering, Inc. Pathways School Checklist Report 02052024 Mr. Mussell 965 E Ustick Rd Pathways in Education Focused Traffic Study February 5, 2024 Page 5 Roadway Location City Date ADT EB AM EB PM East of 793 893 Ustick Road Merdian Rd Meridian 1012012021 22,653 WB AM WB PM 625 1,109 13. Effect upon the highway's level of service The school anticipates a range of 90-120 high-school aged students and 12 staff members throughout the day. The operating hours for the school will be between Sam to 4pm (closed on weekends) and most student appointments are during one of three sessions, typically 2 hours between sessions with no sessions on Friday. As mentioned previously, traffic would likely be staggered throughout each session with minimal occurrence of overlap between session end and start times. Based on the school's operational plan, and the times of each session, the overall effect on the highways level of service is anticipated to be minimal, especially during the peak hour. Additional queue related information is provided in the attached Kittelson & Associates Technical Memorandum dated February 1, 2024. 14. Need for acceleration or deceleration lanes Based on the school's operational plan, each student may be on site anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour and 45 minutes. Each session may potentially have some overlap, but it is anticipated to be minimal since some students who finish early would likely depart the site before the next session starts. Hence, traffic to/from the project would be staggered before and after each session,spreading any potential roadway impacts. Additionally, based on the overall peak hour ingress/egress of vehicles and the traffic count data shown under item 12 above, and the two nearby signalized intersections that could effectively serve as vehicle metering, the need for acceleration or deceleration lanes is not anticipated for either driveway configuration alternative. 15. Internal traffic circulation Under the two-driveway alternative, the proposed layout of the school would allow vehicles to enter the site from Ustick Road for drop-off/pick-up activities to/from the school site. Traffic would circulate through the site by entering from the easterly driveway, travel through the site picking-up/dropping- off students adjacent to the building, and continuing onward to the egress only driveway located to the west of the project. On-site parking will be limited to staff use only on the west side while the remaining parking available on the south side of the school could be forstudents and/or pick-up/drop- off activities. Any anticipated congestion would be captured on-site. TJW Engineering, Inc. Pathways School Checklist Report 02052024 Mr. Mussell 965 E Ustick Rd Pathways in Education Focused Traffic Study February 5, 2024 Page 6 The one-driveway alternative layout would allow vehicles to enter and exit the site from the westerly driveway. Vehicles would travel through the site for pick-up/drop-off activities before making a u- turn at the end of the parking area. Parking availability and usage would be similar for both driveway alternatives. Additional queue related information is provided in the attached Kittelson & Associates Technical Memorandum dated February 1, 2024. 16. Anticipated development on surrounding undeveloped parcels There are no surrounding developments anticipated. 17. Zoning in the vicinity The current zoning in the vicinity is R-8, medium density residential. 18. Access control on adjacent highways Ustick Road at the project driveway is uncontrolled (ie. free flowing) while traffic control at the driveway, will operate as a stop-control as vehicles enter the public ROW. A STOP sign will be erected for vehicles entering Ustick Road, where appropriate. 19. Required striping and signing modifications Signing and striping modifications would be installed based on appropriate MUTCD school zone signage and striping requirements. On-site striping, related to parking, directional pavement markers etc. would be captured on-site. 20. Funding of highway improvements to accommodate development As no highway improvements are anticipated as part of this development, no funding will be required. 21. Proposed highway projects in the vicinity There are no significant highway projects anticipated in the near term. 22. Any other issues as may be considered appropriate to the particular application. There are no other issues readily anticipated as part of the proposed project. TJW Engineering, Inc. Pathways School Checklist Report 02052024 Mr. Mussell 965 E Ustick Rd Pathways in Education Focused Traffic Study February 5, 2024 Page 7 Summary This focused traffic study provides an overview of the proposed project and its potential effects on the local highway infrastructure. This study has been completed in response to the checklist requirements per Idaho Code 67-6519930. Information and details pertaining to specific queue related concerns are provided within the attached Kittelson &Associates Technical Memorandum. Please contact us at (208) 922-7199 if you have any questions regarding this study. Sincerely, %OVAL E�, 2W58 Thomas J. Wheat, PE 0 -12t'OF10�' Gene Kim Principal �' JJQSE Principal Engineer Registered Civil Engineer#20918 Attachments TJW Engineering, Inc. Pathways School Checklist Report 02052024 KITTELSON 101 South Capitol Boulevard, Suite 600 & ASSOCIATES Boise, ID 83702 P 2.08.338.2683 TECHNICAL MEMORANDUM February 1, 2024 Project# 30102 To: Kent Mussell S\oNAL � Mussell Construction, Inc. 0 04 z PO Box 33 �VIA Nampa, ID 83642 a. P-2210� a From: Chase Fuquay, PE; Sonia Daleiden, PE PTOE CC: Mike Mussell S' Queuing Analysis - Pathways in Education - Meridian, ID RE. School On-Site Q g y y Background Mussell Construction is planning to remodel an existing structure located at 965 E Ustick Road for use as a charter school (Pathways in Education, or PIE) serving high-school students. Figure 1 below shows the current site plan. Figure1,.., Site Plan, W f-M,LaF.['ARIVVNTACCKSS _1041REljF.l':LRTME:NTM.(1 N 61 s f.. :r o U •••• STL'T)�iT DROP-OFF tot a+r r m T3 Q 0.0QL _ _ Cf) 60 WCYCLL t 1 11, ?,'t 11:A!3131ENG f SPACES _ _ ' ----- -- 1 r — ' r f .`.. 300-ft Queuing Area(15 Cars) Kittelson&Associates, Inc. February 1,2024 Page 2 Pathways in Education- Meridian,ID Queuing Analysis As shown on the site plan, there is room on-site for approximately 80 feet of drop-off and pick-up area for students who are driven to the school plus 300 feet of on-site queuing storage. This translates to space for approximately 4 cars in the drop-off and pick-up area, and space for an additional 15 cars of on- site queuing storage. PIE is a unique charter school that provides supplemental tutoring sessions to homeschooled children two days a week.There are three tutoring sessions each of those two days, however, a limited number of students attend each session. PIE estimates that the site will serve 240 students overall, of which 120 will be present on a given day spread across 3 separate tutoring sessions starting at 8 a.m., 10 a.m., and 1 p.m. A maximum of 40 students will be present at any given session. Of those 40 students, PIE estimates that 20 would arrive via parent drop-off, 16 will self-drive, and 4 will arrive via an alternate mode (walking or biking). Individual sessions run from 45 minutes to 1 hour and 45 minutes, with no set dismissal times. Queuing Analysis Schools have unique operations as it relates to traffic circulation and arrivals and departures. Schools exhibit distinct peaking characteristics as most students arrive within a 20-minute window of school start and depart within a 20-minute window of school dismissal. Outside of these two 20-minute windows where activity is concentrated, activity to and from the school is minimal. These peaking characteristics result in parent drop off and pick up queues during those 20-minute windows. PIE is unique, as it operates in 3 individual tutoring sessions throughout the day,without a set dismissal time for each session. It is also possible that a drop-off queue could overlap with the pick-up queue from a previous session. As such, a detailed queuing analysis was completed for the school at Session 1 drop-off(8 a.m.), Session 1 pick-up (8:45 a.m. to 9:45 a.m.), and Session 2 drop-off(10 a.m.) times, to identify any potential issues regarding on-site queuing. Kittelson has developed a statistical queuing model in Excel specific to school drop-off and pick-up queues, which takes inputs such as estimated trip generation, available drop off/ loading area, available queuing area beyond drop off, and estimated drop off/ loading times. The model then applies those inputs to an arrival distribution related to the anticipated start/dismissal times of the school to generate an estimated queue length (by number of cars). Kittelson and ACHD have used this spreadsheet model on numerous other school sites and found the results to be defensible and reasonable. The queueing analysis summary morning volume profile differs from the peak hour trip generation ins and outs of the site, as the arrival rate of vehicles is multiplied by a confidence factor of 2 for a statistics- based representation of 95% percentile, which may be a conservative representation of average conditions. Typically, a confidence factor of 1 is applied to afternoon pick-up vehicle arrivals since most pick-up trips will arrive in advance of pick-up processing beginning, limiting variability, however this is not applied since PIE does not have a set dismissal time and operates like a drop-off condition (the main difference being a decrease in processing rate). As noted above, there will be approximately 4 drop-off/pick-up spaces available for use, and approximately 300 linear feet of on-site queuing available beyond the drop-off/ pick—up spaces. For session drop-off, it is estimated that 20 cars will enter the site for drop-off for each session, all arriving within the 20 minutes prior to session start time. For session pick-up, it is estimated that 20 cars will enter Kittelson&Associates, Inc. February 1,2024 Page 3 Pathways in Education- Meridian,ID Queuing Analysis the site for pick-up, with 14 arriving between 9:25 a.m. and 9:45 a.m. Figure 2 shows the drop-off profile for Session 1. Figure 2. Session 1 Drop-off Profile Session 1 Drop-off Profile (8 AM) 45 40 35 30 25 u L j 20 15 — t 10 / 5 ►� r 0 7:30-7:35 7:35-7:40 7:40-7:45 7:45-7:50 7:50-7:55 7:55-8:00 8:00-8:05 8:05-8:10 Current Interval Cars Served tCumulative Waiting beyond drop-off Max Drop-offs Served Assuming 90%of Drop-Off Space Used Max Cars Arriving at Confidence Factor Queue Waiting Capacity As shown in Figure 2, it is estimated that no cars will queue beyond the drop-off area during the Session 1 drop-off period. Figure 3 shows the pick-up profile for Session 1. Figure 3. Session 1 Pick-up Profile Session 1 Pick-up Profile (9:45 AM) 25 20 m 15 a, m 7 10 5 0 9:15-9:20 920-9:25 925-9:30 9:30-9:35 9:35-9:40 9:40-9:45 9:45-9:50 9:50-9:55 9:55-10:00 mobiiiiiiiiii,Curnulative Waiting Max Pick-ups Served using 90%of Pick-up spaces Max Cars Arriving at Confidence Factor Queue Waiting Capacity Kittelson&Associates,Inc. February 1,2024 Page 4 Pathways in Education- Meridian,ID Queuing Analysis As shown in Figure 3, it is estimated that approximately 5 cars will queue beyond the pick-up area during the Session 1 pick-up period. This can be accommodated within the on-site queuing area (300 feet, 15 cars) and is not anticipated to back up to or impact Ustick Road. Figure 4 shows the drop-off profile for Session 2, with the potential overlap from the Session 1 drop-off profile. Figure 4. Session 2 Drop-off Profile Session 2 Drop-off Profile (10 AM) 45 40 35 30 m 25 X j 20 15 I 10 op \ 5 � \ 0 9:30-9:35 9:35-9:40 9:40-9:45 9:45-9:50 9:50-9:55 9:55-10:00 10:00-10:05 10:05-10:10 Current Interval Cars Served tCunnulative Waiting beyond drop-off Max Drop-offs Served Assuming 90%of Drop-Off Space Used — —Max Cars Arriving at Confidence Factor Queue Waiting Capacity As shown in Figure 4, the drop-off profile for Session 2 is not significantly impacted by the Session 1 pick- up overlap, with the same estimated 5 car queue beyond the drop off/pick up area from 9:40 a.m. to 9:45 a.m. Figure 5 shows the estimated extents of the maximum 5 car queue on site. Kittelson&Associates, Inc. February 1,2024 Page 5 Pathways in Education- Meridian,ID Conclusion Figure S. Estimated Maximum On-Site Queue 20'FIRE DEPARTNIEN I AQC�S 20'FLRE DEPARTMFNTACCESS l` L � \ ❑ STUDENTDROP-OFT � ZONE CD Estimated Maximum Queue � U (5 Cars Beyond Drop-off 1 ` EL Pick-up Area)00 Y rNrRANCE. I' RILING \ r } - It \ Conclusion The proposed charter school, Pathways in Education, anticipates that 20 students will be dropped off and picked up for any given tutoring session.The current site plan shows 4 spaces available for drop-off and pick-up, and 300 linear feet of on-site queuing space. Given this information, the queuing analysis herein estimates a maximum queue of 5 cars beyond drop-off/pick-up area during the overlap time when students from one session are leaving and those for the next tutoring session arrive,which can be accommodated on-site and not back up to or impact Ustick Road. Kittelson&Associates, Inc.