1990 Comprehensive Plan
TRANSPORTATION
Montgomery County has become a
regional employment center, retail center, and entertainment center. Household
formation is continuing to increase at a high rate. The comfort and convenience
existing roads have provided has diminished during the urbanization experienced
in the past. As the entrepreneurial endeavors of county citizens continue to
flourish, transportation facilities will require expansion and reorganization
in order to meet the needs of all county residents and visitors. The implementation
of significant transportation system improvements is critical to the comfort,
convenience and economic well being of the County and region. Goals, policies,
and strategies, which will guide necessary actions, include:
GOAL TR 1.0.0
Consider present and future transportation implication
when making land use decisions.
POLICY TR 1.1.0
Develop a road classification system for the
County based on the state functional classification system, with modifications
to reflect local conditions. Criteria for classification should be based on
traffic counts, area population projections and projections for new traffic
destinations, such as industries, commercial centers, and residential areas.
STRATEGY TR 1.1.1
Use the road classification system as one of
the criteria to evaluate all rezoning and special use permit requests.
STRATEGY TR 1.1.2
Amend land use regulations to require a Traffic
Impact Analysis, when a proposed change in land use is expected to generate
10,000 average daily trips (ADT’s) or more.
POLICY TR 1.2.0
Adopt appropriate land use regulations to limit
intensive development to areas which are served by adequate existing or planned
future transportation facilities.
POLICY TR 1.3.0
Reduce the burden on county transportation services
by encouraging mixed-use commercial/residential construction wherever possible
including the renovation of buildings along existing major transportation
routes.
POLICY TR 1.4.0
Consider adoption of an official map to identify
future proposed public streets under the provisions of Article 5, chapter
11, Title 15.1 of the Code of Virginia.
STRATEGY TR 1.4.1
Use the official map to guide acquisition of
right-of-way through purchase or through dedication by land developers.
GOAL TR 2.0.0
Recognize major and minor arterials
as an important County resource that must accommodate two increasing but conflicting
demands being placed on them. One demand is to safely and efficiently carry
increasing volumes of through-traffic. The other demand is to provide safe and
convenient access to a growing number of industrial, commercial, and residential
developments.
POLICY TR 2.1.0
Provide for the safe, orderly, and efficient
flow of traffic along roads classified as major and minor arterials.
STRATEGY TR 2.1.1
Amend land use regulations to limit the number
of access points onto arterials through the following means:
- Allow limited entrances for all new subdivisions.
- Establish minimum lot sizes for all zoning districts.
- Encourage shared access.
- Require that high volume/high turnover
commercial establishments (drive-thru restaurants and convenience stores
for example) locate within other commercial development where access
to the facility is from the development, not from the major thoroughfare.
STRATEGY TR 2.1.2
Establish parking lot standards for developments:
- Require an internal circulation system
which provides access to activities on the lot and is not used as a
"thru-drive" to properties not associated with the development.
- Require adequate numbers of parking spaces per activity.
- Require loading and trash pick-up areas
which are visually separate from parking spaces and which do not impede
internal traffic flow.
POLICY TR 2.2.0
Achieve high quality development along arterials.
STRATEGY TR 2.2.1
Discourage "strip commercial" development along major and minor arterials.
- Require adequate setbacks for all developments.
- Establish a minimum lot depth for development.
STRATEGY TR 2.2.2
Require landscaping for all developments.
STRATEGY TR 2.2.3
Regulate signs so that their use is accentuated
but does not detract from the development in size, scale, construction,
location, or number.
STRATEGY TR 2.2.4
Develop street lighting plans in those areas where lighting is appropriate.
STRATEGY TR 2.2.5
Provide for pedestrian and bicycle access in
those areas where such access is appropriate.
GOAL TR 3.0.0
Improve the County’s present transportation planning process.
POLICY TR 3.1.0
Insure that all transportation decisions are
based on the best available information on current problems and future needs,
including data on demographics and commercial, industrial, and residential
growth.
STRATEGY TR 3.1.1
Solicit public input in transportation planning
through the use of informational meetings, hearings, and surveys.
STRATEGY TR 3.1.2
Allocate funds for collection and analysis
of data related to transportation planning, such as demographic data, traffic
projections, etc.
STRATEGY TR 3.1.3
Develop a geographic information system (GIS) for the county.
POLICY TR 3.2.0
Address future needs for highway improvements,
with special emphasis on projects that support the goals of the comprehensive
plan.
STRATEGY TR 3.2.1
Reserve a portion of the funds allocated for
the Six-Year Secondary Highway Improvement Plan for projects that address
future needs rather than current problems.
STRATEGY TR 3.2.2
Take advantage of state matching funds for
local allocations for highway improvements by including highway improvements
in the County’s Capital Improvements Program (CIP).
STRATEGY TR 3.2.3
Use the road classification system as one of
the criteria for prioritizing projects in VDOT’s Six-Year Secondary Road
Improvement Program.
POLICY TR 3.3.0
New roads and road improvements should work to
enhance communities and impacts on communities should be carefully assessed.
GOAL TR 4.0.0
Create a regional transportation
authority which would address all transportation issues, including highways,
airports and mass transit and which would prepare a regional transportation
master plan to guide future transportation decisions.
POLICY TR 4.1.0
Initiate a transportation authority consisting
of Blacksburg, Christiansburg, Radford, and Montgomery County, and expand
the authority to include other localities when appropriate. Consider the role
of Virginia Tech and Radford University in such an authority.
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