Agenda - 06-04-1981 - Laserfiche WebLink

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k Major roads throughout the County provide access to and link the rural areas of the County with the Towns of Hillsborough, Chapel Hill and Carrboro. NC 8( ,,' ::,.i,- and NC 1009(01d NC 86) link Hillsborough with the Chapel Hill-Carrboro urban- f - izing area. U. ,_ - in addition to providing intra-County service, inter-County service linking Orange County residential areas with employment centers in Durham, the ,"- Research Triangle Park and Raleigh is facilitated along US 15-501, NC 54, I-- nn 17T7 (Erwin Road) and NC 1718 (Mt. Sinai Road). As Orange County is ' - characterized by a negative net commutation pattern, with Orange County residents employed outside the County numbering more than non-residents , employed, in Orange County, the adequacy of the road network providing access to these employment centers is particularly important. In turn, the existing road network influences and encourages residential-workplace dispersion, both within Orange County and between Orange County and adjacent counties i,- containing important employment centers, by facilitating such commutation ''- , patterns. Construction of proposed Interstate 40, shown on the Proposed ' Land Use Plan Map, would most likely significantly impact upon the existing traffic patterns by providing greater access to major traffic generators and encouraging potential development in areas adjacent to the route. , The relationship between residential and commercial uses throughout the County is a bit more problematic, particularly in the fringe areas just -- :. outside the urban and urbanizing portions of the County along heavily traveled roads. These roads are subject to the sprawl of commercial activ- ities in an unsightly manner along ] g stretches of the road. In rural areas, the provision of commercial activities in appropriate locations to serve the needs of local residents is important to satisfy quality of life , concerns and minimize the adverse effects of the relative isolation of these residents from major population centers in the County. The goals and policies of the Orange County Land Use Plan seek to focus commercial activities in a concentrated manner at and near the intersections of important highways and roads, thereby providing for the needs of local residents and minimizing the inconvenient, land consuming and unsightly sprawl of such uses along the transportation system. Certain important intersections in the County have been designated as activity nodes at which non-residential development of various types and varying levels of intensity would be permitted within a given distance of the intersection. In essence, the transportation system would serve to provide good access to . these activites and would support the land use policies directed at achieving the pattern of development desired, in the County. ORANGE COUNTY HIGHWAY CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM In order to assess the capacity of the existing transportation system to accomodate existing and future land use in terms of access and mobility, a road classification system is required. The road classification system describes the roads comprising the transportation network by function, that is, the level of service provided. In the classification hierarchy, the higher the road classification, the greater the 42