DUBE TRADEPORT. TRAFFIC IMPACT ASSESSMENT FOR TRADEZONE 2 Final. Report No. 7593/109105/Rev 4

Transcription

1 DUBE TRADEPORT TRAFFIC IMPACT ASSESSMENT FOR TRADEZONE 2 Final Report No. 7593/109105/Rev 4 Submitted by: Aurecon South Africa (Pty) Ltd PO Box 932 Pinetown SOUTH AFRICA Contact Person: Dave Kellock T: F: E:dave.kellock@aurecongroup.com Submitted to: Dube Tradeport Corporation 4 th Floor, 29⁰ South 7 Umsinsi Junction LA MERCY Attn: Ms Kate Ralfe Submission date: 25 September 2013

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3 Document Verification Sheet Aurecon SA (Pty) Ltd Project Title Dube Tradeport: Traffic Impact Assessment for Tradezone 2 Project Number Document Title File Reference P:\Projects\109105\Reports\ Version Date (dd/mm/yy) Filename P\Projects\109105\DubeTradeportTradezone2TIAReport 1 18/03/2013 Description Traffic Impact Assessment 1 st draft Prepared by Reviewed by Approved Name T. Ratshilumela D. Kellock M van Tonder Signature Version Date (dd/mm/yy) Filename P\Projects\109105\DubeTradeportTradezone2TIAReportRev2 2 26/04/2013 Description Traffic Impact Assessment 2 nd draft Prepared by Reviewed by Approved Name D Kellock D Kellock M van Tonder Signature Version Date (dd/mm/yy) Filename Traffic Impact Assessment Final 3 21/06/2013 Description Minor changes and corrections Prepared by Reviewed by Approved Name D Kellock D Kellock M van Tonder Signature Page ii

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5 TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. Introduction and Background Location and Surrounding Road Network Adjacent Road Network N2 National Freeway ushukela Drive Dube Boulevard R102 Provincial Road Brake Drive New Spine Road (west of Tongaat Interchange) Existing Traffic Conditions Data Source Roads in the North of the Study Area Existing Level of Service on ushukela Drive Existing Level of Service on the R Existing Level of Service on Dube Boulevard ushukela Drive / N2 Interchange - Eastern Intersection ushukela Drive / N2 Interchange Western Intersection ushukela Drive / Brake Drive Intersection ushukela Drive / R102 Intersection R102 / Brake Drive Intersection Summary of Road Conditions in the North of the Study Area Roads in the South of the Study Area R102 / Dube Boulevard Intersection Dube Boulevard / Tradeport Access Road Intersection Dube Boulevard / KSIA Passenger Terminal Access Road Intersection Dube Boulevard / Car Hire Access Road Intersection Summary of Road Conditions in the South of the Study Area Existing Pedestrian Activity Road Safety The Dube Tradeport Tradezone 2 Development Proposals The Development Proposals Access Proposals Traffic Generation General Discussion Trip Generation Trip Distribution and Assignment Five Year Forecast on the Existing Traffic Volumes ushukela Drive R N2 Interchange Eastern Intersection N2 Interchange Western Intersection ushukela Drive / Brake Drive Intersection ushukela Drive and R102 Intersection R102 and Brake Drive Intersection R102 / Dube Boulevard Intersection Five Year Forecast plus Development Generated Traffic ushukela Drive Page iv

6 9.2 R N2 Interchange Eastern Intersection N2 Interchange Western Intersection ushukela Drive and DTP Spine Road Intersection ushukela Drive and Brake Drive Intersection ushukela Drive and R102 Intersection R102 and Brake Drive Intersection DTP Main Spine Road and the New Brake Drive Link Intersection Ten Year Forecast plus Development Generated Traffic Volumes N2 Interchange Eastern Intersection N2 Interchange Western Intersection ushukela Drive and Brake Drive Intersection ushukela Drive and R102 Intersection R102 and Brake Drive Intersection ushukela Drive and Main DTP Spine Road Intersection DTP Main Spine Road and the New Brake Drive Link Intersection Proposed Air Force Base Recommended Upgrades to the Surrounding Road Network Literature Review of Previous Studies for the Tongaat Area Northern Urban Development Corridor Proposed Eastern Link Conclusions Recommendations REFERENCES LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: Locality Plan... 2 Figure 2: Existing Weekday AM and PM Peak Hour Volumes... 6 Figure 3: ushukela Precinct Land Use Plan Figure 4: Trip Distribution Percentages (Gravity Model) Figure 5: Development Generated AM and PM Peak Hour Volumes Figure 6: Five Year Forecast on Existing Volumes Figure 7: Five Year Forecast plus Development Generated Traffic plus DTP Generated Traffic Volumes in Figure 8: Ten Year Forecast on Existing Weekday AM and PM Peak Hour Traffic Volumes (2022) Figure 9: Ten Year Forecast plus Development Generated Traffic in Figure 10: Western Bypass and Eastern Arterial (Source: SSI, 2010) LIST OF TABLES Table 1: N2 Interchange Eastern Intersection, Existing Traffic... 8 Table 2: N2 Interchange Western Intersection, Existing Traffic Table 3: ushukela Drive and Brake Drive Intersection, Existing Traffic Table 4: R102 and ushukela Drive Intersection, Existing Traffic Table 5: Existing LOS at R102 / Brake Drive Intersection Table 6: Dube Boulevard and R102 Intersection, Existing Traffic Table 7: Dube Boulevard and Tradeport Access Road Drive Intersection, Existing Traffic Table 8: Dube Boulevard and KSIA Access Road Intersection, Existing Traffic Table 9: Dube Boulevard and Car Hire Access Road Intersection, Existing Traffic Table 10: Generated Traffic Volumes Table 11: N2 Interchange Eastern Intersection, Five Year Forecast on Existing Traffic Volumes Table 12: N2 Interchange Western Intersection, Five Year Forecast on Existing Traffic Volumes Table 13: N2 Interchange Western Intersection, Five Year Forecast plus Generated Traffic Table 14: Brake Drive and ushukela Drive, Five Year Forecast on Existing Traffic Volumes Table 15: R102 and ushukela Drive Intersection, Five Year Forecast on Existing Traffic Volumes Page v

7 Table 16: R102 and ushukela Drive Intersection, Five Year Forecast plus Generated Table 17: Dube Boulevard and R102 Intersection, Five Year Forecast on Existing Traffic Volumes Table 18: N2 Interchange Eastern Intersection, Five Year Forecast plus Generated Traffic Table19: Upgraded N2 Interchange Eastern Intersection, Five Year Forecast plus Generated Traffic Table 20: N2 Interchange Western Intersection, Five Year Forecast plus Generated Traffic Table 21: N2 Interchange Western Intersection, Five Year Forecast plus Generated Traffic Table 22 ushukela Drive and ushukela Main Spine Road Intersection, Five Year Forecast plus Generated Traffic Table 23: Brake Drive and ushukela Drive, Five Year Forecast plus Generated Traffic Table 24 Upgrade Brake Drive and ushukela Drive, Five Year Forecast plus Generated Traffic Table 25: R102 and ushukela Drive Intersection, Five Year Forecast plus Generated Table 26 R102 and ushukela Drive Intersection, Five Year Forecast plus Generated Table 27: R102 / Brake Drive Intersection, Five Year Forecast plus Generated Table 28: Upgrade R102 / Brake Drive Intersection, Five Year Forecast plus Generated traffic Table 29 ushukela Main Access Road and Brake Drive Intersection, Five Year Forecast plus Generated Traffic Table 30: N2 Interchange Eastern Intersection, Ten Year Horizon plus Generated Traffic Table 31: N2 Interchange Western Intersection, Ten Year Horizon plus Generated Traffic Table 32: Brake Drive and ushukela Drive, Ten Year Horizon plus Generated Traffic Table 33: R102 and ushukela Drive, Ten Year Horizon plus Generated Traffic Table 34: Brake Drive and R102, Ten Year Horizon plus Generated Traffic Table 35: ushukela Drive and Main ushukela Access Road Intersection, Ten Year Forecast plus Generated Traffic Table 36: Summary of Road Network Upgrades Required within the Five Year Horizon Table 37: Summary of Road Network Upgrades Required within the 10 Year Horizon LIST OF ACRONYMS BRT Bus Rapid Transit DTP Dube Tradeport ETA THD GLA IRPTN ethekwini Transport Authority Tongaat Hulett Developments Gross Leasable Area Integrated Rapid Public Transport Network JV Joint Venture KSIA King Shaka International Airport KZN DOT LOS TIA Veh/h KwaZulu Natal Department of Transport Level of Service Traffic Impact Assessment Vehicles per hour Page vi

8 Executive Summary Dube Tradeport (DTP) and the King Shaka International Airport (KSIA) are key economic drivers of the ethekwini and KwaZulu-Natal economies. Additionally, the adjacent ushukela Precinct (over m² of light industrial development), which is being developed jointly by Dube Tradeport and Tongaat Hulett Developments, is situated immediately to the north of the airport/tradeport, south of ushukela Drive (ex Watson Highway). Together, these developments consist of over 1.5 million square metres of bulk area, which constitutes a development of massive proportions. This Traffic Impact Assessment (TIA) was commissioned by Dube Tradeport Corporation to plan Tradezone 2 and its access requirements when fully developed in 10 years time and to advise on additions and alterations to the network to satisfy its travel needs. Mention will be made of the ushukela development but, for the sake of clarity, this report will only address traffic flows and access needs of Tradezone 2 in isolation and traffic flows generated by adjacent developments will not be quantified or included in the assessment. The following roads in and around the airport/tradeport were assessed: N2 National Road ushukela Drive (ex Watson Highway) R102 Provincial Road Dube Boulevard Dube Tradeport Link Road (under construction) Dube Tradeport southern access road KSIA Passenger Terminal Road KSIA Car Hire Road As is customary in a TIA, the present day or base year situation was first assessed and the following existing deficiencies were identified: ushukela Drive which is a two way, two lane road, is running very close to capacity and will have to be upgraded to a dual carriageway over its full length in the near future. The R102 which is a two way, two lane road between Dube Boulevard and Tongaat town, is running very close to capacity and will have to be upgraded to a dual carriageway in the near future. Also, the section through Tongaat town, which is a dual carriageway, is carrying high traffic volumes and will need to be upgraded, at least locally. The intersection of ushukela Drive and Brake Drive is congested and requires improvements. All other roads/intersections are presently operating satisfactorily. Page vii

9 When existing traffic volumes are projected forward for 5 years, the following elements of the network show signs of distress, purely as a result of natural growth: ushukela Drive fails R102 single carriageway section fails The eastern intersection at the N2/uShukela Drive interchange needs to be improved The western intersection at the N2/uShukela Drive interchange fails and needs to be signalised The ushukela Drive/Brake Drive intersection fails and needs to be improved The ushukela Drive/R102 intersection fails and needs to be improved All other roads and intersections are satisfactory. Initially, the tradezone (and ushukela Precinct) will be served by a single access road being the tradeport spine road which starts at an intersection on ushukela Drive and runs south through the tradeport and airport. This roadway has been designed to have a very wide median island to accommodate a public transport facility at some time in the future. The ethekwini Transport Authority has indicated that they are planning such a facility as part of their IRPTN (integrated rapid public transport network) but this particular route will only materialise at some time in the future. Considering the magnitude of the DTP, KSIA and ushukela developments at over 1.5 million square metres of bulk, it soon became obvious that more than one access point would be required. It was also apparent that freight movement should preferably not be mixed with airport passenger transport movement, which predominantly occurs to the south of the airport along Dube Boulevard. As no further accesses would be practical or permitted along ushukela Drive in the north in current circumstances, the focus turned to access from the east or west and it was finally decided that access from the west, off the R102, be investigated. Thus a new route was planned, initially on the alignment of an access stub shown in the Northern Urban Development Corridor by SSI, 2010 which starts at an intersection on the R102, 2.7 km south of the ushukela Drive intersection and travels east, passing over the Hlawe River and linking up with the tradeport link road. Having succeeded in finding a second access road into the tradeport, the TIA continued to a 10 year horizon where existing traffic flows were projected ahead using a growth factor and traffic flows generated by the whole of tradezone 2 which were superimposed onto the 10 year background flows. Clearly, with developments of this size, many network improvements were required to ensure satisfactory conditions and this was achieved without any excessively drastic measures. In the longer term, relief of pressures in the study area can come from several sources: Page viii

10 1. A shift onto public transport when the IRPTN materialises 2. The construction of the planned Eastern Arterial around Tongaat which will improve accessibility and movement in that area. 3. The provision of an eastern link to the N2 airport interchange 4. The provision of the Mount Moreland/Dube West link Page ix

11 1. Introduction and Background Dube Tradeport Corporation is a schedule 3C Provincial Public Entity mandated with the development of the Dube Tradeport. The corporation has developed Tradezone 1 which is approximately m² of bulk area and is almost fully let. The proposed future development will comprise of Tradezone 2, Business Aviation, Air Force Base and Cargo Terminal land-use types. Land use and transportation are symbiotic: development density and location influence regional travel patterns, and, in turn, the degree of access provided by the transportation system can influence land use and development trends. Hence, Aurecon was commissioned to undertake a Traffic Study for the proposed development. The objectives of this study are as follows: To determine the existing levels of service on the surrounding road network (status quo). To determine and quantify the impact of the additional traffic generated by the development on the surrounding road network. proposed To propose mitigating recommendations and upgrades to address any safety and capacity issues that may be identified on both the internal and external road networks. To propose recommendations on access requirements. To consider all possible future planning for the study area. To liaise with the relevant stakeholders to ensure integrative planning for the area. 2. Location and Surrounding Road Network The proposed development is located on a tract of land to the south east of Tongaat and west of National Route 2 (N2). Tongaat is a town to the north of Durban that has a strong heritage in the sugar cane industry. The town has since diversified from its origins and boasts a range of manufacturing, retailing and service outlets. Businesses within Tongaat provide employment for a fair share of the residents however many residents are employed in neighbouring towns. The proposed development is located between the N2 freeway and Provincial route R102, adjacent to the King Shaka International Airport (KSIA). The proposed development will be located to the west of the existing Tradezone 1. There is a large mixed-use development planned to the north of the airport/tradeport complex and it is known as ushukela precinct. It is situated between the airport/tradeport complex and ushukela Drive. The location of the proposed development in relation to the surrounding area is shown on the Locality Plan, Figure 1. Page 1

12 N Figure 1: Locality Plan 3. Adjacent Road Network 3.1 N2 National Freeway The N2 is a dual carriageway freeway with two lanes in each direction and it traverses the study area in a north-south direction. The geometry of the N2 within the study area can be described as rolling with gentle horizontal curves and a speed limit of 120km/h. The N2 Tongaat Toll Plaza is located to the east of the airport/tradeport complex ADT (average daily traffic) data was obtained from a secondary station at Tongaat interchange which revealed that there is approximately veh/day travelling northbound and veh/day travelling southbound, daily. Approximately 7% of daily traffic on the N2 is composed of heavy vehicles. Page 2

13 3.2 ushukela Drive ushukela Drive (ex Watson Highway) is situated to the north of the airport/tradeport and it traverses the study area in an east-west direction from the eastern coastline to the town of Tongaat in the west. ushukela Drive crosses under the N2 at a grade-separated diamond interchange located at the north-east corner of the study area. In the vicinity of this interchange ushukela Drive is a dual carriageway road with two lanes in each direction. As ushukela Drive proceeds away from this interchange in both directions, the road tapers down to a single carriageway road with a single lane in each direction. ushukela Drive has a lane width of approximately 3.5m and a shoulder width of approximately 1.0m, with a fairly wide verge on either side of the road. The geometry of ushukela Drive within the study area can be described as rolling with gentle curves. The speed limit on ushukela Drive is 80km/h. 3.3 Dube Boulevard Dube Boulevard traverses the study area in an east-west direction. It extends from the KSIA/ N2 off ramp and terminates at the intersection of R102 / Dube Boulevard. Dube Boulevard is a dual carriageway road with two lanes in each direction, with exclusive right turning lanes at the existing intersections. As Dube Boulevard proceeds west away from the intersection with Tradezone access road, the road tapers down to a single carriageway road with a single lane in each direction. ushukela Drive has a lane width of approximately 3.5m. The speed limit on this section of ushukela Drive is 80km/h. 3.4 R102 Provincial Road R102 is a Class 2 provincial road traversing the study area in a north-south direction from Verulam town towards Tongaat in the north. The geometry of the R102 within the study area can be described as rolling with gentle curves. In the Tongaat area, the R102 is locally known as Gopalall Hurbans Road. This road is viewed is an important link between local towns such as Verulam, Tongaat, Greylands, KwaDukuza and others in the north. 3.5 Brake Drive Brake Drive is a local road which intersects with R102 and with ushukela Drive in the south and east of Tongaat respectively. The role of Brake Drive in the road network will be discussed later in this report. 3.6 New Spine Road (west of Tongaat Interchange) The new spine road is currently under construction by DTP and it traverses in a north-south direction through the study area. The spine road extends from ushukela Highway towards the Dube Tradeport in the south. As part of the broader transportation plan for this area, a 60m road reserve has been provided whereby a new major public transport corridor will traverse through the proposed ushukela Precinct and the Dube Tradeport (DTP) development in a north-south direction. The long term vision is to link this corridor to the proposed Cornubia development to the north of Mt. Edgecombe. This new north-south public transport corridor will form an integral link in the greater integrated rapid public transport network (IRPTN) that is proposed for the area. The IRPTN will use either Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) or light rail. Page 3

14 Transportation systems affect community character, the natural and human environment and economic development patterns. As such, it is the primary intent of the developers of this project to integrate land-use and the transportation system such that the development can stimulate the economy, shape development patterns and influence the quality of life in the Tongaat Area. 4. Existing Traffic Conditions The quality of traffic flow is generally expressed as a Level of Service (LOS) which is defined as a qualitative measure of the operational conditions within a traffic stream as perceived by road users. This definition generally describes these traffic conditions in terms of speed, travel times, freedom to manoeuvre, traffic interruptions, comfort, convenience and safety. There are six levels of service used to describe the quality of travel on the road network. Each of these levels is given a letter designation from A to F, with LOS A representing the best operating conditions while LOS F represents the least desirable operating conditions. The road network surrounding the proposed Tradezone 2 development will be analysed in detail and the current levels of service on the existing road network will be discussed in detail in this Chapter. The levels of service at each intersection will be presented schematically. The following legend will be used to depict the LOS of each movement at the intersections. GOOD>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>BAD 4.1 Data Source The base year background traffic, or existing traffic, refers to the traffic volumes currently on the road network in the year that the traffic study is undertaken before the developmentgenerated traffic is added. The proposed DTP Tradezone 2 Development is expected to generate peak traffic on a typical weekday during both the morning and afternoon peak hours, hence these two peaks will be analysed. The existing traffic volumes on the road network surrounding the site were obtained from classified traffic counts undertaken by Delca Research at the following intersections on Tuesday 7 December 2010: ushukela Drive / N2 Interchange eastern intersection. ushukela Drive / N2 Interchange western intersection. ushukela Drive / Brake Drive ushukela Drive / R102 R102 / Dube Boulevard Page 4

15 It is envisaged that a substantial volume of the generated traffic will originate from the south of the study area either from Verulam, Durban and other surrounding towns. Hence, the existing traffic volumes on Dube Boulevard were obtained from classified traffic counts undertaken by Delca Research at the following intersections on Wednesday 13 April 2011: Dube Boulevard / KSIA Terminal Access Road. Dube Boulevard / DTP Access Road. Dube Boulevard / Car Hire Access Road. A traffic growth factor of 5% per annum was used to calibrate the traffic counts conducted in years 2010 and 2011 respectively. The existing traffic count at the R102 / Brake Drive intersection was conducted by Bala Survey and Research on 27 August The existing AM and PM peak hour traffic volumes on the surrounding road network are shown on Figure 2. Page 5

16 Figure 2: Existing Weekday AM and PM Peak Hour Volumes Page 6

17 4.2 Roads in the North of the Study Area Existing Level of Service on ushukela Drive ushukela Drive is a two lane rural highway with a single lane in each direction. The existing AM peak hour two way traffic flow is veh/h while the existing PM peak hour two way traffic flow is veh/h. Unlike multi-lane freeways, traffic operations on two way, two lane rural highways are unique as lane changing and passing are only possible in the face of opposing traffic. The ability to overtake is hindered as the volume of opposing traffic increases. The capacity of a typical two lane highway is veh/h two way under ideal conditions. Ideal conditions are defined as a highway with no restrictive geometric, traffic and environmental characteristics. Due to the existing geometric, traffic and environmental conditions that limit the mobility on ushukela Drive, the theoretical capacity of this highway segment is approximately veh/h two way. An analysis of this section of highway revealed that ushukela Drive is presently operating at level of service E (LOS E) in both the AM and PM peak hours, given that this road is presently conveying high volumes of traffic in both the peak hours. Level of Service E is deemed to be unacceptable by the statutory authorities Existing Level of Service on the R102 The R102 traverses along the western periphery of the study area in a north-south direction and serves as the main arterial road through the Tongaat CBD. Within the Tongaat CBD, the R102 is a dual carriageway road with two lanes in each direction. As the R102 travels southwards out of the CBD it becomes a two lane rural highway with a single lane in each direction. The single carriageway section of the R102 south of Tongaat conveys in excess of veh/h two-way in each of the peak periods and currently operates at a LOS E. Level of service E represents unacceptable operating conditions that are very close to capacity Existing Level of Service on Dube Boulevard Dube Boulevard traverses the southern periphery of the study area in an east-west direction and serves as the main arterial road to and from the KSIA. The intersections along this road are provided with exclusive turning lanes and slip lanes. Dube Boulevard conveys in excess of veh/h and veh/h two-way during the AM and PM peak hours respectively. Dube Boulevard is currently operating below 50% of its capacity hence the traffic operating conditions are acceptable ushukela Drive / N2 Interchange - Eastern Intersection ushukela Drive crosses under the N2 at a diamond interchange just to the north of the Tongaat Toll Plaza. The eastern intersection at this interchange services the southbound traffic. In the vicinity of this intersection, ushukela Drive is a dual carriageway road with two lanes in each direction however, as the road proceeds east towards Tongaat Beach it tapers down to a single carriageway road with a single lane in each direction. The on and off ramps are single lane ramps and the intersection is priority controlled with the off ramp having a Stop control. The southbound off-ramp has a ramp plaza located approximately midway along its length. Page 7

18 The eastern intersection was analysed using the SIDRA analysis software during the AM and PM weekday peak hours. The geometric layout of the eastern intersection and the LOS schematics for the AM and PM weekday peak hours are shown in Table 1. The SIDRA analysis revealed that the eastern intersection currently operates at a good level of service during both the AM and PM peak hours under the existing traffic conditions. Minor congestion is encountered at the southbound off-ramp from N2 freeway which is operating at LOS D and E during AM and PM peak hours respectively. In general, the through traffic on ushukela Drive is unimpeded by traffic on the ramps. The westbound traffic turning left onto the southbound on-ramp operates freely. The average delays during the AM and PM peak hours are 6,2 and 5,3 seconds respectively. The average queue lengths during the AM and PM peak hours are 22,6 and 19,4 metres respectively. The pre-existing traffic condition is acceptable at this intersection. Eastern Intersection Geometric Layout AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 1: N2 Interchange Eastern Intersection, Existing Traffic Page 8

19 4.2.5 ushukela Drive / N2 Interchange Western Intersection In the immediate vicinity of the western intersection, ushukela Drive is still a dual carriageway road with two lanes in each direction but it tapers down to a single carriageway with a single lane in each direction as the road proceeds towards the Tongaat CBD. There is a single lane on each ramp in the northbound direction and there is a toll ramp plaza approximately halfway along the northbound on ramp. A SIDRA analysis confirmed that this intersection operates at a good level of service during the AM and PM peak hours. The off-ramp approach will operate at a LOS C and D during the AM and PM peak hours respectively. The pre-existing traffic condition at this intersection is acceptable. The geometric layout of this intersection and the LOS Schematics are shown in Table 2. Western Intersection Geometric Layout Page 9

20 AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 2: N2 Interchange Western Intersection, Existing Traffic ushukela Drive / Brake Drive Intersection As ushukela Drive traverses west into the Tongaat CBD it intersects with Brake Drive at a stop controlled intersection. Brake Drive predominantly conveys residential traffic in a north- south direction and ushukela Drive crosses Brake Drive in an east-west direction. ushukela Drive and Brake Drive are both single carriageway roads with one lane in each direction. An analysis on this intersection revealed that this intersection is operating at an overall LOS F during the AM peak hour and LOS E during the PM peak hour. The high traffic volume along ushukela Drive causes the side road traffic to experience delays of more than 2 minutes. The queue lengths encountered along the eastern approach of ushukela Drive are approximately 80m. This occurs as a result of no right turning lane which is a pre-existing problem at this intersection. The geometric layout and the LOS schematics are shown in Table 3. Intersection of ushukela Drive and Brake Drive Page 10

21 AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 3: ushukela Drive and Brake Drive Intersection, Existing Traffic Geometric upgrades are currently required at this intersection. An EIA is presently being carried out for improvements to ushukela Drive between the R102 and Brake Village and proposals in this regard will be taken into account later in this report ushukela Drive / R102 Intersection ushukela Drive terminates at a signalised junction with the R102 in the Tongaat CBD. The R102 in the vicinity of this intersection is a dual carriageway road with two lanes in each direction. ushukela Drive is a dual carriageway road with two lanes in each direction with a designated left turning embayment on the eastern approach to this intersection. The signals at this intersection change from two phases to three phases during the peak periods. Table 4 reveals that this intersection is operating at a good LOS in both the AM and PM periods. In general, this intersection operates relatively freely, with minor congestion encountered at the turning movements. The average queue lengths and delays are acceptable and no severe delays were observed on site. The geometric layout and the LOS schematics are shown below in Table 4. Page 11

22 Intersection of ushukela Drive and R102 AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 4: R102 and ushukela Drive Intersection, Existing Traffic R102 / Brake Drive Intersection Brake Drive starts at a Stop controlled intersection on the R102, situated approximately 2.7 km south of the R102/uShukela Drive intersection and it proceeds eastwards then northwards, crossing over ushukela Drive at a point approximately 600m east of the ushukela Drive/R102 intersection. Although Brake Drive is a continuous through road, it presently operates as a private driveway from the R102 intersection to two homesteads situated south of ushukela Drive. Consequently, the traffic volumes on this section of Brake Drive are extremely low as can be seen in Figure 2 (3 vehicles in and out of Brake Drive in the AM peak hour and none at all in the PM peak hour). The configuration of this intersection is shown in Table 5. The R102/Brake Drive intersection is therefore clearly operating satisfactorily. Page 12

23 Intersection of Brake Drive and R102 Table 5: R102 and Brake Drive Intersection Layout Summary of Road Conditions in the North of the Study Area In summary, the following pre-existing problems were identified in the northern part of the study area: ushukela Drive is running close to its link capacity at a LOS E. The single carriageway section of the R102, south of Tongaat, is running close to capacity at a LOS E The southbound off-ramp traffic at the N2 interchange eastern intersection is running close to capacity at a LOS E. The intersection of ushukela Drive and Brake Drive is running close to capacity with poor levels of service on both Brake Drive approaches in the peak hours. 4.3 Roads in the South of the Study Area R102 / Dube Boulevard Intersection Dube Boulevard terminates at a signalised junction with the R102, west of the KSIA and south of the Tongaat CBD. The R102 in the vicinity of this intersection is a dual carriageway road with two lanes in each direction. Dube Boulevard is a dual carriageway road with two lanes in each direction with designated dual left turning slip lanes on the eastern approach to this intersection. The signals at this intersection change from two phases to three phases during the peak periods. Page 13

24 Table 6 reveals that this intersection is operating at a good LOS in both the AM and PM hours. In general, this intersection operates relatively freely, with minor congestion encountered at the turning movements. The average queue lengths and delays are acceptable and no severe delays were observed on site. The geometric layout and the LOS schematics are shown below in Table 6. Intersection of Dube Boulevard and R102 AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 6: Dube Boulevard and R102 Intersection, Existing Traffic Page 14

25 4.3.2 Dube Boulevard / Tradeport Access Road Intersection Dube Boulevard intersects with Tradeport Access Road at a signalised junction on the south of the proposed development. Dube Boulevard is a dual carriageway road with two lanes in each direction. The Tradeport Access Road is a dual carriageway road with two lanes towards the intersection and a single lane towards the DTP with a designated left turning embayment on the northern approach to this intersection. The signals at this intersection change from two phases to three phases during the peak periods. Table 7 reveals that this intersection is operating at a good LOS in both the AM and PM periods. In general, this intersection operates relatively freely, with minor congestion encountered at the turning movements. The average queue lengths and delays are acceptable and no severe delays were observed on site. The geometric layout and the LOS schematics are shown below in Table 7. Intersection of Dube Boulevard and Tradezone Access Road AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 7: Traffic Dube Boulevard and Tradeport Access Road Drive Intersection, Existing Dube Boulevard / KSIA Passenger Terminal Access Road Intersection KSIA passenger terminal access road terminates at a signalised junction with the Dube Boulevard in the south of the Airport. The south approach to this intersection is an access road Page 15

26 to Dube City. The KSIA access road in the vicinity of this intersection is a dual carriageway road with two lanes in each direction with dedicated dual signalised left slip lanes towards the east. Dube Boulevard is a dual carriageway road with two lanes in each direction with exclusive dual right turning lanes towards the KSIA. The signals at this intersection change from two phases to three phases during the peak periods. Table 8 reveals that this intersection is operating at a good LOS in both the AM and PM hours. In general, this intersection operates relatively freely, with no congestion encountered at the turning movements. The average queue lengths and delays are acceptable and no severe delays were observed on site. The geometric layout and the LOS schematics are shown below in Table 8. Intersection of Dube Boulevard and KSIA Access Road AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 8: Dube Boulevard and KSIA Access Road Intersection, Existing Traffic Dube Boulevard / Car Hire Access Road Intersection The Car Hire Access Road terminates at a signalised junction with the Dube Boulevard in the south of the KSIA. The car hire Access Road in the vicinity of this intersection is a dual carriageway road with two lanes in each direction with dedicated dual signalised left slip lanes towards the east. Dube Boulevard is a dual carriageway road with two lanes in each direction, see Table 9. Page 16

27 The SIDRA analysis revealed that this intersection is currently operating at favourable traffic conditions during both peak periods. The pre-existing traffic conditions at this intersection are acceptable. Intersection of Dube Boulevard and Car Hire Access Road AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 9: Dube Boulevard and Car Hire Access Road Intersection, Existing Traffic Summary of Road Conditions in the South of the Study Area From the above, it is apparent that all of the relatively new roads and intersections in the south of the airport/tradeport are operating satisfactorily. 4.4 Existing Pedestrian Activity No pedestrian activity was observed on the section of ushukela Drive in the immediate vicinity of the study area due to its rural nature. As ushukela Drive proceeds into the Tongaat CBD, there is a notable increase in pedestrian activity, especially on the section of ushukela Drive from Brake Drive to the R102. However, pedestrians are adequately catered for in this section as sidewalks are present along both sides of the road. Designated pedestrian crossing areas are provided at all the signalised intersections. In the south, only minimal numbers of pedestrians were observed. Page 17

28 As such, pedestrians pose no obvious threat to motorists unless they engage in jaywalking behaviour. 4.5 Road Safety The road safety conditions on the surrounding road network are deemed to be acceptable within the study area. Relatively high volumes of traffic pass through the Tongaat CBD with a combination of pedestrian and public transport activity along ushukela Drive and the R102. Minibus taxis parks along both sides of the road in the Tongaat CBD, often double parking which affects both the capacity and road safety in terms of sight distance. However this problem can be easily resolved through better law enforcement in the area. Traffic generally travels at acceptable speeds on the surrounding road network. Sight distance conditions on the road network within the study area are acceptable. No major adverse road safety conditions were observed on the road network surrounding the study area. In the south of the study area, speeds along Dube Boulevard are a concern with many vehicles exceeding the posted speed limit of 80km/h which drops to 60km/h in the vicinity of intersections. Rumble strips and signage have been installed to counter such speeding but it is still an issue. It would appear that speed limit enforcement is required to keep travel speeds within reasonable proportions. 5. The Dube Tradeport Tradezone 2 Development Proposals 5.1 The Development Proposals The DTP development is a multi-phased greenfields development. Dube Tradeport was opened in 2010 and the existing development comprises of the Airport, Tradezone 1, Agrizone and Support Zones. Phase 2 of the Tradeport development will comprise of Tradezone 2, a cargo terminal, an Airforce base and a general aviation facility. Tradezone 2 is shown in Figure 3. Page 18

29 Figure 3: Tradezone 2 Layout Page 19

30 For the sake of clarity, this assessment will assess Tradezone 2 in isolation and it will not take traffic flows from adjacent developments into account. This is considered necessary in order to clearly define and assess the needs of Tradezone 2. It is envisaged that by 2020 the proposed Tradezone 2 will be fully developed. For further information on the DTP expansion, reference should be made to the traffic study completed by TECHSO in April 2013, entitled Traffic Impact Study for the Dube Tradeport Roads Master Planning. 5.2 Access Proposals Currently, there is one access to the DTP Development and it extends from the intersection of Dube Boulevard and Tradeport Access Road to the north towards the proposed development. This access road is approximately 2km long. This access road will, however, fall away when the second runway for KSIA is constructed as they are on the same alignment. The second access will be the new Spine Road (currently under construction) which extends from ushukela Drive to the south towards the DTP. Subsequently, the TECHSO report Traffic Impact Study for Rezoning within the Dube Tradeport of June 2012, indicated that in the longer term, the primary access intersection may have to be upgraded to an interchange and this would therefore preclude the existence of a second intersection along this stretch of road. As it is generally acknowledged that the magnitude of the DTP/uShukela Development is too large to have only one access intersection, numerous alternative access positions were considered. This proved difficult as only one access may be taken off ushukela Drive, the airport and its runways, as well as environmental considerations, preclude access to the east in the short term and the present access to the south will fall away. It was therefore decided that a new access off the R102 in the west, south of Tongaat, would be introduced and tested. It is proposed that the new access road will come off the R102 approximately 2.7 km south of the existing R102 / ushukela Drive intersection at a position indicated in the Northern Urban Development Corridor report by SSI in It will follow an alignment towards the Hlawe River where it will cross the watercourse by means of a bridge and traverse further east into the DTP development. As this alignment is initially on the alignment of Brake Drive in the vicinity of the R102, it will subsequently be referred to as the Brake Drive access. The required capacity and lane configurations of these proposed accesses will be elaborated on in Chapter Traffic Generation 6.1 General Discussion A critical aspect of any traffic study is to quantify the volume of traffic that will be generated by the proposed development. The trip generation rates for this study were carefully determined using a combination of available data and sound professional judgement. Page 20

31 Trip generation rates were extracted from the Department of Transport Manual RR 92/228 entitled SA Trip Generation Rates. In instances where the SA Generation Rates Manual did not provide a rate for a particular land use type, then rates were extracted from the American ITE Manual. The units of measure for the rates obtained from both the above mentioned sources are given as the number of private vehicle trips per unit of area. For this study, modal split manipulation between private vehicles and public transport will not be included due to misaligned implementation timeframes for the DTP Tradezone 2 and that of eta s IRPTN. 6.2 Trip Generation Table 10 shows the total peak hour traffic that will be generated by the proposed development when it attains full completion. A total of private vehicle trips per hour will be generated by the proposed DTP development in the AM and PM peak hours. During the AM peak hour, veh/h will enter the development while 997 veh/h will exit the development when it reaches 100% completion. The converse of these volumes holds true for the PM peak hour. Page 21

32 Table 10: Generated Traffic Volumes TRADEZONE 2 AM PEAK HOUR Sub Precinct Land Use Platform Area (m²) FAR Bulk Area (m 2 ) Land UseType Land Use Split Area (m 2 ) Trip Generation Rate Source Document Unit (m²) Peak Total 2 way (veh/h) Split (%) In (%) Out (%) In Out 1 Tradezone Light Industry Warehousing Distribution Manufacturing SA Trip Gen. Rates SA Trip Gen. Rates SA Trip Gen. Rates SA Trip Gen. Rates Business Aviation Corporate Aviation SANDF SAPS Air wing MRO SA Trip Gen. Rates SA Trip Gen. Rates SA Trip Gen. Rates SA Trip Gen. Rates Cargo Terminal Cargo Terminal SA Trip Gen. Rates TOTAL NOTE: The above table does not take the proposed Air Force base into account because it was a late decision to add the base to these land uses. The base will be discussed later where it will be shown that it will generate very low external peak hour trips. Page 22

33 7. Trip Distribution and Assignment The volume of traffic generated by the proposed development was distributed and assigned onto the surrounding road network to analyse the impact of the generated traffic on the surrounding road links and intersections. There are several trip distribution models that could possibly be used in a traffic impact study of this nature. A Gravity Model was selected for this study as it is based on the simple principle that the attractiveness of a development is positively influenced by the size thereof and conversely reduced by the travel impedance to the development. The trip distribution that was developed is as follows; 84% of DTP Tradezone 2 development traffic will access the development from the south. 60% of development traffic will access the Tradezone 2 through R102. The other 24% of development traffic will travel on the N2 Freeway and access the Tradezone 2 through the Tongaat interchange and ushukela Drive. The remaining 16% of the development traffic will originate from the Tongaat, N2 north and Westbrook areas. The DTP trip distribution percentages are shown in Figure 4 and the generated AM and PM peak hour volumes are shown in Figure 5. Note: The above distribution is exactly the one used in the ushukela precinct planning. Page 23

34 Figure 3: Trip Distribution Percentages (Gravity Model) Page 24

35 Figure 4: Development Generated AM and PM Peak Hour Volumes. Page 25

36 8. Five Year Forecast on the Existing Traffic Volumes The South African guidelines on Traffic Impact Studies recommend that for developments that generate more than vehicle trips in the peak hour, an analysis of the 10 year horizon is required. The proposed Tradezone 2 development will generate far more than vehicle trips in the peak hours and hence only requires an analysis of a 10 year horizon. However, due to the sensitivity of the study area as a result of the new airport and other surrounding developments, it was considered prudent to analyse the 5 year horizon as well. A compound growth rate of 5% was used to forecast the background traffic volumes. This growth rate was deemed to be applicable for this study due to the rapid on-going growth of this area. The 5 year forecast on the existing traffic volumes is shown on Figure 6. The combined 5 year forecasted traffic volumes plus development-generated traffic volumes are shown on Figure 7. The results of the analyses of these combined traffic volumes are discussed in this Chapter. 8.1 ushukela Drive The base year analysis has shown that ushukela Drive is currently operating at a level of service E in both the AM and PM peak hours. An analysis of the 5 year forecasted background traffic volumes reveals that ushukela Drive will convey veh/h two way in the AM peak hour and veh/h in the PM peak hour. This means that with a single lane per direction, ushukela Drive will experience severe congestion before any development-generated traffic is added onto the road network. This roadway will operate at a LOS F during the peak hours purely as a result of the natural growth in the existing traffic volumes. Once the development generated traffic volumes are considered, ushukela Drive will operate at LOS F. This section of ushukela Drive will unquestionably require a capacity improvement within a five year horizon by upgrading it to a dual carriageway. 8.2 R102 An analysis of the dual carriageway section of the R102 revealed that this section of road will operate at an acceptable level of service in the 5 year horizon. The analysis of the single carriageway section of the R102, south of Tongaat, revealed that this section of the R102 will operate at a LOS F in the 5 year horizon purely as a result of the natural growth in traffic volumes. The single carriageway section of the R102 will not cope with forecasted traffic volumes within the 5 year horizon period as the expected natural traffic is will be in excess of 1 500veh/h per direction. Hence, the R102 will have to be upgraded to a dual carriageway. All further analyses of these sections of road will be based on the premise that they will have been upgraded to dual carriageways. Page 26

37 Figure 5: Five Year Forecast on Existing Volumes Page 27

38 8.3 N2 Interchange Eastern Intersection The SIDRA analysis of the five year forecast on existing traffic volumes revealed that severe congestion (LOS F) will be encountered at the N2 southbound off-ramp during both the both peak hours on the northern approach. The through traffic on ushukela Drive will operate fairly efficiently. The westbound traffic turning left onto the southbound on-ramp will operate freely. The LOS schematics are shown in Table 11. The average delays will be 32.0 and 5.6 seconds for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. The average queue lengths will be and 30.5 metres for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. This intersection will require upgrading in the base year. AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 11: N2 Interchange Eastern Intersection, Five Year Forecast on Existing Traffic Volumes. The expected traffic condition in five years time will not be acceptable. It should be noted that the resulting poor traffic condition will be experienced by the existing natural traffic. Geometric upgrades will be required at this intersection. 8.4 N2 Interchange Western Intersection The SIDRA analysis of the five year forecast on existing traffic at the western intersection of the N2 interchange revealed that this intersection will encounter high levels of congestion (LOS F) particularly on the southern approach (off-ramp). The average delays will be over 7 and 4 minutes for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. The average queue lengths will be 36 and 14.3 metres for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. This intersection will require upgrading within the 5 year horizon. The LOS schematics are shown in Table 12 and the LOS for the upgraded intersection are shown in Table 13. Page 28

39 AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 12: N2 Interchange Western Intersection, Five Year Forecast on Existing Traffic Volumes. Upgrade of N2 Interchange Western Intersection Western Intersection Geometric Layout AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 53: N2 Interchange Western Intersection, Five Year Forecast plus Generated Traffic with Signalisation. Page 29

40 This intersection must be upgraded to a signalised intersection in the five year horizon. In addition, a left slip lane must add onto the southern approach. The results of the SIDRA analysis shown in Table 13 show that the improvements proposed for this intersection will improve the overall efficacy of this intersection. The average delays will be 16.1 and 17.4 seconds for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. The average queue lengths will be 93.7 and 78.9 metres for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. 8.5 ushukela Drive / Brake Drive Intersection Table 14 shows that the ushukela Drive and Brake Drive intersection will experience unacceptable levels of congestion (LOS F) on three approaches during the AM peak hour. The resulting poor levels of service on ushukela Drive westbound traffic are primarily due to the right turning traffic towards Brake Drive northern approach. The average delays will be and 65.3 seconds for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. The average queue lengths will be and metres for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. As such, this intersection will require capacity upgrades in the 5 year horizon. AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 64: Brake Drive and ushukela Drive, Five Year Forecast on Existing Traffic Volumes. 8.6 ushukela Drive and R102 Intersection The SIDRA analysis of the ushukela Drive and R102 intersection shows that serious congestion (LOS F) will be encountered on the southern and eastern approaches as shown in Table 15. The average delays will be and seconds for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. The average queue lengths will be and metres for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. As such, upgrades will be required in the 5 year horizon. Page 30

41 Intersection of ushukela Drive and R102 AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 75: R102 and ushukela Drive Intersection, Five Year Forecast on Existing Traffic Volumes. Page 31

42 Upgrade of ushukela Drive and R102 Intersection Intersection of ushukela Drive and R102 AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 86: R102 and ushukela Drive Intersection, Five Year Forecast plus Generated An exclusive right turning lane is required on the southern approach and a left slip lane is required on the northern approach as shown in Table 16. The proposed upgrades will improve the overall efficiency of this intersection as shown in SIDRA schematics above. The average delays will be 22.5 and 29.5 seconds for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. The average queue lengths will be and metres for the AM and PM peak hours. It should, however, be noted that space around this intersection is at a premium and that it may require property acquisition and demolition to accommodate the proposed improvements Page 32

43 8.7 R102 and Brake Drive Intersection The very low traffic volumes on Brake Drive will continue to be low in the 5 year horizon and no congestion will be experienced at this intersection. 8.8 R102 / Dube Boulevard Intersection In general, this intersection operates relatively freely, with minor congestion encountered at the turning movements. The average queue lengths and delays are acceptable and no severe delays were observed on site. In the five years horizon, this intersection will continue to operate at acceptable levels of service, see Table 17. AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 97: Dube Boulevard and R102 Intersection, Five Year Forecast on Existing Traffic Volumes. 9. Five Year Forecast plus Development Generated Traffic The South African guidelines on Traffic Impact Studies recommend that for developments that generate more than vehicle trips in the peak hour, an analysis of the 10 year horizon is required. The proposed TZ2 will generate far more than vehicle trips in the peak hour and hence only requires an analysis of a 10 year horizon. However, due to the sensitivity of the study area as a result of the new airport and other surrounding developments, it was considered prudent to analyse the 5 year horizon as well. The 5 year forecast on the existing traffic volumes is shown on Figure 6. The combined 5 year forecasted traffic volumes plus development-generated traffic volumes are shown on Figure 7. The results of the analyses of these combined traffic volumes are discussed below. Page 33

44 Figure 6: Five Year Forecast plus DTP Generated Traffic Volumes in 2017 Page 34

45 9.1 ushukela Drive The base year analysis has shown that ushukela Drive is currently operating at a level of service E in both the AM and PM peak hours. An analysis of the 5 year forecasted background traffic volumes reveals that ushukela Drive will convey veh/h two way in the AM peak hour and veh/h in the PM peak hour. This means that with a single lane per direction, ushukela Drive will experience severe congestion before any development-generated traffic is added onto the road network. This roadway will operate at a LOS E during the peak hours purely as a result of the natural growth in the existing traffic volumes. Once the development generated traffic volumes are considered, ushukela Drive will operate at a LOS F. This section of ushukela Drive will unquestionably require a capacity improvement within a five year horizon by upgrading it to a dual carriageway with further intersection improvements which will include exclusive lanes. 9.2 R102 An analysis of the dual carriageway section of the R102 revealed that this section of road will operate at an acceptable level of service in the 5 year horizon. The analysis of the single carriageway section of the R102, south of Tongaat, revealed that this section of the R102 will operate at a LOS F in the 5 year horizon purely as a result of the natural growth in traffic volumes. The single carriageway section of the R102 will not cope with forecasted traffic volumes within the 5 year horizon period as the expected natural traffic is will be in excess of veh/h per direction. Hence, the R102 will have to be upgraded to a dual carriageway. All further analyses of these sections of road will be based on the premise that they will have been upgraded to a dual carriageway. Page 35

46 9.3 N2 Interchange Eastern Intersection The SIDRA analysis of the combined traffic volumes revealed that severe congestion (LOS F) will be encountered at this intersection during both the peak hours particularly on the northern approach. The through traffic on ushukela Drive westbound traffic will operate fairly efficiently. The LOS schematics are shown in Table 18. This intersection will require upgrading in the five year horizon, see Table 19. AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 108: N2 Interchange Eastern Intersection, Five Year Forecast plus Generated Traffic Page 36

47 Upgrade of N2 Interchange Eastern Intersection Eastern Intersection Geometric Layout AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table19: Upgraded N2 Interchange Eastern Intersection, Five Year Forecast plus Generated Traffic This intersection must be upgraded from a stop controlled intersection to a signalised intersection to improve the overall efficiency of this intersection. Furthermore, a 25m left slip lane must be added to the northern approach. A slip lane on ushukela eastern approach should be provided to minimise excessive delays on traffic travelling towards Durban. The SIDRA analysis of the improved geometric configuration exhibit enhanced levels of service at this intersection during both the peak hours as shown above. The average delays will be 10.6 and 16.3 seconds for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. The average queue lengths will be for both peak hours. Page 37

48 9.4 N2 Interchange Western Intersection The SIDRA analysis of the combined traffic volumes at the western intersection of the N2 interchange revealed that this intersection will encounter levels of congestion (LOS F) on the southern approach (off-ramp). This intersection will require upgrading in the 5 year horizon. The LOS schematics are shown in Table 20 and the upgrade schematics are shown in Table 21. AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 20: N2 Interchange Western Intersection, Five Year Forecast plus Generated Traffic Page 38

49 Upgrade of N2 Interchange Western Intersection Western Intersection Geometric Layout AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 21: N2 Interchange Western Intersection, Five Year Forecast plus Generated Traffic This intersection must be upgraded to a signalised intersection in the five year horizon. In addition, a left slip lane must add onto the southern approach. The results of the SIDRA analysis shown in Table 21 shows that the improvements proposed for this intersection will improve the overall efficacy of this intersection. The average delays will be 20.1 and 16.5 seconds for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. The average queue lengths will be and metres for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. Page 39

50 9.5 ushukela Drive and DTP Spine Road Intersection At the time of writing this report, this intersection was under construction. It will serve as the main access into the DTP (and ushukela Precinct development). It will be utilised by traffic from Tongaat as well as N2 Freeway traffic. This access intersection will require traffic signals due to high volumes traversing along ushukela Drive as well as the expected traffic to enter and exit the DTP development. This intersection will operate under good levels of service in both the peak hours. The average delays will be 15.2 and 16.6 seconds for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. The average queue lengths will be 86.9 and 69.5 metres for the AM and PM peak hours respectively see Table 22. Intersection of ushukela Drive and DTP Main Spine Road AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table22: ushukela Drive and DTP Main Spine Road Intersection, Five Year Forecast plus Generated Traffic Page 40

51 9.6 ushukela Drive and Brake Drive Intersection Table 23 shows that the ushukela Drive and Brake Drive intersection will further experience unacceptable levels of congestion (LOS F) on all the approaches during the PM peak hour. The average delays will be 30.8 and seconds for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. The average queue lengths will be and metres for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. As such, this intersection will require capacity upgrades in the 5 year horizon. AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 113: Brake Drive and ushukela Drive, Five Year Forecast plus Generated Traffic Upgrade of ushukela Drive and Brake Drive Intersection Intersection of ushukela Drive and Brake Drive Page 41

52 AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 124: Upgrade Brake Drive and ushukela Drive, Five Year Forecast plus Generated Traffic The SIDRA analysis shown in Table 24 reveals that once this intersection is upgraded to the geometric configuration shown above it will operate at acceptable levels of service during both the peak hours. The average delays will be 8.6 and 13.4 seconds for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. The average queue lengths will be 98.3 and metres for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. 9.7 ushukela Drive and R102 Intersection The SIDRA analysis of the ushukela Drive and R102 intersection show that serious congestion (LOS F) will be encountered on all approaches as shown in Table 25. The average delays will be and 84.9 seconds for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. The average queue lengths will be and metres for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. As such, upgrades will be required in the 5 year horizon, see Table 26. AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 135: R102 and ushukela Drive Intersection, Five Year Forecast plus Generated Page 42

53 Upgrade of ushukela Drive and R102 Intersection Intersection of ushukela Drive and R102 AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 146: R102 and ushukela Drive Intersection, Five Year Forecast plus Generated An exclusive dual right turning lane is warranted on the southern approach of R102 as shown in Table 26. The proposed upgrades will improve the overall efficiency of this intersection as shown in SIDRA schematics above. The resulting average delays will be 25.3 and 24.2 seconds for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. The average queue lengths will be and metres for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. It should be noted that the above improvements will be extremely difficult to build in what is a built up area with shop fronts and businesses right up to the R102 road reserve on both sides and even encroaching into the road reserve in places. Page 43

54 9.8 R102 and Brake Drive Intersection The SIDRA analysis of this intersection shows that complete failure (LOS F) will happen on the Brake Drive approach during both the peak hours as shown in Table 27. The south approach on R102 will experience excessive delays as a result of the shared through / right turning lane as well as the high right turning volumes on the R102. As this intersection is aimed to be the primary access to the proposed developments, it will require upgrading in the 5 year horizon, see Table 28. AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 157: R102 / Brake Drive Intersection, Five Year Forecast plus Generated Upgrade of R102 and Brake Drive Intersection Intersection of Brake Drive and R102 Page 44

55 DTP Main Spine Road DTP Main Spine Road AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 168: Upgrade R102 / Brake Drive Intersection, Five Year Forecast plus Generated traffic This priority controlled intersection must be upgraded to a signalised intersection in the 5 year horizon. Furthermore, an exclusive right turning lane will be required on the southern approach and a left slip lane will be required on the northern approach. The eastern approach will require designated left and right turning lanes. The average delays will be 20.4 and 19.9 seconds for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. The average queue lengths will be and metres for the AM and PM peak hours respectively 9.9 DTP Main Spine Road and the New Brake Drive Link Intersection A new intersection will be required to link Brake Drive and the DTP Main Spine Road. The intersection layout shown in Table 29 is proposed for this junction. The analysis of this proposed layout yielded good operating conditions for the 5 year horizon during both the AM and PM peak hours as shown in Table 30. The average delays will be 15.7 and 15.2 seconds for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. The average queue length will be 70 metres for both the AM and PM peak hours. Intersection of DTP Main Spine Road and Brake Drive Page 45

56 AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table29: DTP Main Spine Road and Brake Drive Intersection, Five Year Forecast plus Generated Traffic 10. Ten Year Forecast plus Development Generated Traffic Volumes The South African Manual on Traffic Impact Studies recommends that in the case of multiphase developments that generate in excess of trips in the peak hour, the 10 year horizon period should be analysed. Since the DTP development will generate in excess of vehicle trips, an analysis of the 10 year horizon was undertaken in this chapter. A growth rate of 5% was used to forecast the 10 year traffic volumes. The 10 year forecast on the existing traffic volumes is shown on Figure 8 (no development-generated traffic). The combined 10 year forecasted background traffic volumes plus the DTP Development generated traffic volumes are shown in Figure 9. These combined traffic volumes were analysed to determine the accumulative impact on the surrounding road network in the 10 year horizon. The analysis of these combined traffic volumes on the surrounding road network is discussed hereafter. Page 46

57 Figure 8: Ten Year Forecast on Existing Weekday AM and PM Peak Hour Traffic Volumes (2022) Page 47

58 Figure 9: Ten Year Forecast plus Development Generated Traffic in 2022 Page 48

59 10.1 N2 Interchange Eastern Intersection The SIDRA analysis of the combined traffic volumes revealed that all the movements at the eastern intersection (as upgraded in the 5-year horizon) will operate at a reasonable level of service during both the AM and PM peak hours. The eastbound through traffic on ushukela Drive will operate under unconstrained condition. The westbound traffic turning left onto the southbound on-ramp will operate at a LOS D during both peak hours. The average delays will be 11.8 and 17.7 seconds for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. The average queue lengths will be metres for both peak hours. The longest queue will be as a result of westbound right turning traffic towards N2 southbound carriageway. The LOS schematics are shown in Table 30. AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 30: N2 Interchange Eastern Intersection, Ten Year Horizon plus Generated Traffic The required geometric upgrades during the five year horizon will be adequate to cater for the proposed DTP development N2 Interchange Western Intersection The through traffic on ushukela Drive will continue to operate at a good LOS in the 10 year horizon. The traffic turning left onto the northbound on-ramp operates will operate at a LOS D during both peaks hours. The average delays will be 31.8 and 23.8 seconds for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. The average queue lengths will be and metres for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. Due to the geometric upgrades during a five year horizon, the spare capacity provided will be adequate to cater for the 10 year forecasted traffic volumes. The LOS schematics are shown in Table 31. Page 49

60 AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 31: N2 Interchange Western Intersection, Ten Year Horizon plus Generated Traffic 10.3 ushukela Drive and Brake Drive Intersection The five year geometric recommendation will not be adequate to accommodate the expected traffic volumes in 10 years time. Table 32 shows the required geometric upgrades at this intersection. The expected average delays will be 10.6 and 20.7 seconds for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. The average queue lengths will be and metres for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. The longest queues will be experienced by vehicle traffic traversing along ushukela Drive during both peak hours. Page 50

61 AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 3172: Brake Drive and ushukela Drive, Ten Year Horizon plus Generated Traffic 10.4 ushukela Drive and R102 Intersection A SIDRA analysis was conducted and it shows that all movements will operate at acceptable levels of service in both peak hours. The average delays will be 23.2 and 45.3 seconds for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. The average queue lengths will be and metres for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. No hard upgrades will be required at this intersection in the 10 year horizon. However it is suggested that ushukela Drive s northbound middle lane should be a shared left/right, see Table 33. It has to be repeated that the extensive improvements proposed in the 5 year scenario will be very difficult to achieve because of the built up nature of the centre of Tongaat. It is likely that buildings will have to be expropriated and demolished in order to effect the widenings. Page 51

62 Intersection of R102 and ushukela Drive AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 33: R102 and ushukela Drive, Ten Year Horizon plus Generated Traffic 10.5 R102 and Brake Drive Intersection The geometric improvements that will be carried out at this intersection in the 5 year horizon will provide sufficient capacity to comfortably handle the additional trips in the 10 year horizon. The levels of service at this intersection will be acceptable in both peak hours negating any need for improvements. The average delays will be 33.0 and 10.5 seconds for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. The average queue lengths will be and metres for the AM and PM peak hours respectively see Table 34. Intersection of Brake Drive and R102 Page 52

63 AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 184: Brake Drive and R102, Ten Year Horizon plus Generated Traffic 10.6 ushukela Drive and Main DTP Spine Road Intersection This access intersection will operate at good levels of service in both the peak hours. The average delays will be 14.0 and 17.6 seconds for the AM and PM peak hours respectively. The average queue lengths will be and 98.1 metres for the AM and PM peak hours respectively see Table 35. No improvements will be required at this intersection in the 10 year horizon. Intersection of ushukela Drive and DTP Main Spine Road Page 53

64 AM Peak LOS Schematic PM Peak LOS Schematic Table 195: ushukela Drive and Main DTP Spine Road Intersection, Ten Year Forecast plus Generated Traffic 10.7 DTP Main Spine Road and the New Brake Drive Link Intersection Since it is expected that this intersection will primarily be utilised by the development traffic, the geometric configuration recommended for a five year horizon will be adequate to accommodate the expected development traffic. Hence, no improvements will be required in the 10 year horizon Proposed Air Force Base As a late addition to this TIA, a proposed Air Force base is going to be added to the site. This is as a result of a government decision to create a dig-out port on the site of the old airport (and Air Force base) in Prospecton. The new base will have mixed uses and it will only be used by the personnel of the South African Air Force (SAAF). Some of the facilities that will be on the proposed base are a 140 sleeper hostel, sport field (rugby/soccer), squash courts and a gym. It is anticipated that these residents/personnel will not make any external commute trips during peak hours since they live and work internally. Married couples will have homes/sleeping quarters for 55 couples off the tradeport site and a percentage of these may make peak hour trips. If we reduce trips due to shift work, lift sharing and public transport usage, the number of peak hour trips becomes negligible. The addition of the SAAF base is therefore not expected to have any significant effects on the Tradezone2 peak hour traffic flows. Page 54

65 11. Recommended Upgrades to the Surrounding Road Network Table 36 shows a suite of all required upgrades. It is also stated whether the unfavourable traffic condition is a pre-existing or due to the proposed development. Page 55

66 Table 36: Summary of Road Network Upgrades Required within the Five Year Horizon Horizon Network Element Proposed Upgrade Time Horizon ushukela Drive Must be upgraded to a dual carriageway road with two lanes in each direction <5 years R102 south of Tongaat Must be upgraded to a dual carriageway road with two lanes in each direction <5 years Prior Five Year Horizon ushukela Drive / Brake Drive Intersection <5 years An additional through lane will be required on ushukela Drive The above intersection configuration will adequately cater for the traffic volumes in In Five Years time Brake Drive Brake Drive must be upgraded/constructed to provide access into the DTP Development for the generated traffic volumes. In addition a new link road will be required linking Brake Drive and the Main Spine Road through the DTP development. 5 years Page 56

67 N2 Interchange Eastern Intersection 5 years A left slip lane must be added to the northern approach. Signal warrants must be checked and if the warrants are met then the intersection must be signalised. N2 Interchange Western Intersection 5 years A left slip lane must be added to the southern approach. Signal warrants must be checked and if the warrants are met then the intersection must be signalised Page 57

68 R102 / ushukela Drive Intersection 5 years Exclusive dual left turning lanes are required on the eastern approach. Exclusive dual right turning lanes are required on the southern approach. R102 / Brake Drive Intersection 5 years Install Traffic Signals at this intersection in Five Years time. This intersection must be upgraded to the layout shown above. Page 58

69 ushukela Drive and Main Spine Road Intersection 5 years The intersection configuration shown above must be used for the main access intersection with ushukela Drive New Access Link off Brake Drive and Main Spine Road 5 years The intersection configuration shown above will provide the necessary capacity required at this intersection. Page 59

70 Table 37: Summary of Road Network Upgrades Required within the 10 Year Horizon Horizon Network Element Proposed Upgrade Time Horizon In 10 Years Horizon ushukela Drive / Brake Drive Intersection 10 years An exclusive lane on Brake Drive north approach. The above intersection configuration will adequately cater for the envisaged traffic volumes in 10 years time. Page 60

71 12. Literature Review of Previous Studies for the Tongaat Area 12.1 Northern Urban Development Corridor Transportation Studies and Local Area Plans (LAP) for the Tongaat area were reviewed with the primary intent of understanding the future transport and developmental plans for the Tongaat area and to determine its impact on the DTP and ushukela developments. Of particular significance, is a technical report compiled by SSI in November 2010 for the King Shaka Airport and Tongaat Area, as part of a greater study for the Northern Urban Development Corridor (NUDC). The report highlights the fact that the R102 is a strategic route in this area that needs to be enhanced as a regional mobility corridor to augment the connectivity of the surrounding areas to the envisioned Aerotropolis. However, the capacity of the R102 in the immediate vicinity of Tongaat cannot be improved due to the extensive commercial, residential and industrial activities on either side of the R102. Furthermore, the promotion of the R102 as a regional mobility corridor through the Tongaat CBD will result in several negative externalities such as unprecedented congestion, road safety problems, unfriendly pedestrian environment and high levels of gas emissions within the Tongaat precinct. These externalities will have a negative socio-economic impact on the Tongaat CBD. As a result, the SSI study focuses on developing a hierarchical system of roads that will promote regional mobility in this area by selecting alignments that will bypass the Tongaat CBD. According to SSI (2010), a bypass route for the Tongaat CBD has been contemplated since the late 1960 s. A route alignment to the west of Tongaat, later commonly referred to as the Western Bypass, was initially proposed and proclaimed as Provincial Main Road 407. During the late 1980 s, further transportation studies for this area motivated for a route on the eastern side of Tongaat, principally because the terrain was conducive to road construction. This alignment to the east of Tongaat is referred to as the Eastern Arterial. The SSI (2010) study tested various scenarios based on travel patterns and traffic volumes in the area. The objective of this assessment was to identify a road network that provides regional mobility and access to developments while simultaneously decongesting the Tongaat CBD. The study concluded that a combination of the Western Bypass and the Eastern Arterial will improve the regional mobility and accessibility in the Tongaat area. The Western Bypass and the Eastern Arterial are shown in Figure 10, which was extracted from the SSI (2010) study. The Western Bypass will specifically provide a high quality regional mobility link between the King Shaka Airport and the neighbouring towns to the north. Furthermore, the Western Bypass will separate the regional traffic that is currently passing through Tongaat from the CBD traffic. The proposed Western Bypass will have a minimum design speed of 100km/h with a fairly gentle geometric alignment along most of its alignment. Access to the Western Bypass will be at interchanges only, while crossing points with other roads will be achieved by means of overpasses and underpasses (SSI, 2010). Page 61

72 The Eastern Arterial on the other hand will function as an accessibility route providing unimpeded access to the airport and surrounding developments such as the Dube Tradeport and other developments. The Eastern Arterial will unlock the land on the eastern side of Tongaat for the expansion of the town and create new development opportunities. The proposed alignment of the Eastern Arterial will most likely permit a design speed of 80km/h given the rolling terrain in the Tongaat area. Access onto the Eastern Arterial will either be at interchanges or limited to at-grade intersections. For certain sections of the Eastern Arterial there are alternative alignments proposed in the SSI study, as shown hereafter in Figure 10. In essence, the SSI (2010) study shows that the Western Bypass and the Eastern Arterial will form critical links in ensuring the efficacy of the future road network for the NUDC, as the R102 will certainly not have the capacity to function as regional mobility corridor in the future. This traffic study for the Tradezone 2 development directly correlates with the findings of the SSI study, as the results of analyses to date show that the R102 will not have the capacity to handle the future volumes of traffic. In addition to the proposed bypass routes, the SSI (2010) study explicitly shows that ushukela Drive will encounter capacity problems in the future as a result of the natural growth in traffic volumes and will require an upgrade to a two lane dual carriageway highway, (SSI, 2010, p8). This finding also directly corroborates the results of the analyses conducted in this study for Tradezone Proposed Eastern Link A link to the south east has been proposed from the beginning of the DTP/KSIA project in the EIA and Structure Plan. Such a link would run parallel to the N2 between the N2 and first runway and it would intersect with Dube Boulevard approximately 1.3 km west of the N2. This link is somewhat contentious for several reasons but there is no doubting the fact that it would serve a useful purpose in relieving pressure at other accesses for both Dube Tradeport and ushukela alike, in the longer term. It is therefore recommended that planning for such an Eastern Link be continued in the future. Page 62

73 Figure 7: Western Bypass and Eastern Arterial (Source: SSI, 2010) Page 63