Orange County NC Website
Browse       Search
ORANGE COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA <br />RESOLUTION REGARDING LEGISLATIVE MATTERS <br />(Second Resolution presented by Commissioner Jacobs) <br />WHEREAS, reexamination of the role and structure of the North Carolina Department of Transportation has <br />been a major thrust of recent reform efforts led by the Governor, the North Carolina legislature, and the <br />North Carolina Secretary of Transportation; and <br />WHEREAS, while Orange County respects and accepts the traditional control of funds by the North <br />Carolina Department of Transportation, it is mindful that the current structure was established during the <br />Depression of the early 1930s, when counties went bankrupt and the state was primarily agrarian; and <br />WHEREAS, the pressures of increasing urbanization in some counties have outstripped North Carolina's <br />capacity to provide adequate roads and effective transportation alternatives in a timely fashion; and <br />WHEREAS, highway congestion is a major factor in air pollution, difficulty of travel, road rage, and <br />degradation of quality of life; and <br />WHEREAS, preservation of community character and environmental health are central to local government <br />efforts in Orange County; and <br />WHEREAS, it is necessary for both counties and the North Carolina Department of Transportation to <br />address transportation demands in a prompt, creative, flexible, democratic, and cost-effective manner in <br />order to maintain the quality of life enjoyed by our citizens. <br />NOW, THEREFORE, be it resolved by the Board of Commissioners of Orange County that the Board <br />hereby requests the Senators and Representatives representing Orange County to support a study <br />commission on the relationship between county interests and the North Carolina Department of <br />Transportation with regard to: <br />1. promoting smooth and safe flow of traffic through setting speed limits, altering the <br />synchronization of traffic signals, permitting driveway access, and recommending the placement of traffic <br />signals and signage; <br />2. establishing means of promoting pedestrian travel, such as the installation of crosswalks; <br />3. encouraging a more flexible approach to highway design, particularly in subdivisions, and to <br />permit a variation from the "one size fits all" approach as contained in A Policy on Geometric Design of <br />Highways and Green Streets; <br />4. maintaining the highest possible safety standards but giving consideration in designing <br />facilities to factors such as the setting and character of an area, the needs of the users, the environment, <br />and the land-use planning goals of the community; <br />5. providing increased county participation in the design of transportation facilities, and with <br />respect to road projects, input on the type of road, its width, its design speed and whether bicycle and <br />pedestrian facilities are to be included; <br />6. identifying other transportation functions in which county government has a legitimate <br />interest that require a minimal additional expenditure of funds and do not compromise public safety.