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Draft 09-09-2013 2 |Page Implementation Coordination The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) lacks authority over the land development process, and Orange County lacks authority over access permitting decisions on state highways. Together, these factors make coordination essential and to create consistent standards and procedures in the Study Area. Coordination between NCDOT and the County must consider the effects of its decisions on the entire Eno EDD Study Area if the partnership is to work efficiently. Because each agency has authority over a different part of the process, they can achieve far more through mutual cooperation than either agency can achieve alone. Coordination is also beneficial to the public and the developer or property owner whose financial investment is at stake. Role/Responsibility of the NCDOT The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) is responsible for regulating the location, design, construction, and maintenance of street and driveway connections on the State Highway system. The NCDOT recognizes landowners have certain reasonable rights of access consistent with their needs. However, access connections are a major contributor to traffic congestion and poor roadway facility operations that can result in decreased highway capacity, and increased safety hazards. Early NCDOT review of development proposals help ensure conformance with access management requirements and provides NCDOT an opportunity to suggest changes prior to local plat approval, which may occur well in advance of a request for a driveway permit. The NCDOT Access Management Group (of the Congestion Management Section of the Traffic Engineering and Safety Systems Branch) examines the potential safety and capacity impacts that new or expanding traffic generations may have on the state roadway system and provides recommendations based on the analysis. This process typically requires the completion of a Traffic Impact Study by the Developer/ Property Owner/Applicant Other recommendations may range from denying access, to requiring the developer to construct additional travel or turn lanes, access restrictions, internal traffic pattern operations or installing new traffic signals to minimize the traffic impact. Role/Responsibility of Orange County Several sections of the Orange County Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) (adopted 2011) will assist with implementation of the Eno EDD Access Management Plan. The UDO requires site plans to comply with County adopted access management, transportation and/or connectivity plans and denote the location of future roadways(s) and access easements, whether public or private, and to ensure and encourage future connectivity. The UDO also provides additional requirements for Economic Development Districts as well as the Major Transportation Corridor Overlay District (MTC), to ensure that a development proposal complies with EDD and MTC policies, procedures and regulations. 65