Tri-Party Transportation Conference Moving Alberta Into the Future Alberta Highway 881 Corridor Management Plan Lac La Biche to Anzac Session Forum 1 - Highways March 2017
INTRODUCTION + 241 km long, 2 lane roadway + 65 km east of Highway 63 + Connects Lac La Biche with Anzac (Fort McMurray) + Rolling forested/muskeg environment + Growing truck & industrial traffic + Many OD Loads + Increasing challenge to safely manage all types of road users 63 881 2
OUTLINE + Study Purpose + Methodology + Existing Conditions + Future Conditions + Analysis & Findings Passing Lanes Climbing Lanes Safety Rest Areas Access Management Highway Twinning + Recommendations 3
STUDY PURPOSE + Development of a Corridor Management Plan to Outline strategy for a staged upgrading that will safely accommodate all road users 63 Provide guidance for industrial development and access 881 Protect adjacent land for future highway upgrading 4
STUDY PURPOSE + In Response to: Increasing industrial activity Trucks, particularly over-dimensional loads Public concern about highway safety + Preliminary Concept 5
METHODOLOGY + Climbing and Passing Lane Strategy + Safety Rest / Truck Staging Area Strategy + Access Management recommendations + Preliminary Side of Twinning + Highway Realignment Options + Staging 6
EXISTING CONDITIONS + Traffic Volumes: Highway 881 Corridor Management Plan Average annual growth rate of 9%; 2004 to 2013 Volumes ranged from 1,600 to 3,500 vehicles/day + Truck Traffic: Approaching 20% of total volume; 1 in 5 vehicles Increasing Over-Dimensional loads; 3,300 in 2013 7
EXISTING CONDITIONS + Numerous Accesses + Highway Operations LOS ranging from B to D Passing opportunities are often limited 8
EXISTING CONDITIONS + Safety The five-year average collision rate below the provincial average for 2-lane rural highways + Shoulder Width Weighted Average Pavement Width 9.4m (1m shoulder width) 9
EXISTING CONDITIONS + Geometry Design speed 110 km/h Substandard horizontal and vertical curves, grades 10
EXISTING CONDITIONS + Existing Roadside Turnouts: Highway 881 Corridor Management Plan Five pairs of turnouts, Lac La Biche to Anzac Relatively narrow, not intended as O-D staging areas 11
FUTURE CONDITIONS + Traffic Growth Rate Annual linear growth rate of 9% Not sustainable Volumes presently dropping off 12
FUTURE CONDITIONS + Highway Classification Level 2 Arterial Highway Multi-Lane Roadside Management Standard + Highway Standards: Ultimate four lane divided cross-section Expressway standard, (no interchanges) Accommodate OD loads 13
PASSING LANES + Purpose: Provide assured passing opportunities where length and location of passing zones are less than desirable 14
ANALYSIS PASSING LANES + Warrant: Highway 881 Corridor Management Plan Net Passing Opportunity Greater than 40%, satisfactory Between 30% and 40%, marginal Less than 30%, improvement considered Does not reflect the impact of OD loads 15
FINDINGS PASSING LANES + Based on 2013 Volumes Marginal passing opportunities two locations + Based on Estimated 2034 Volumes All sections would have marginal or insufficient passing opportunities, with majority needing improvement Highway 881 Corridor Management Plan 16
CLIMBING LANES + Purpose: Mitigate the effects of heavily loaded vehicles operating on long and or steep grades Provide assured passing opportunities 17
ANALYSIS CLIMBING LANES + Warrant: Highway 881 Corridor Management Plan Is based on meeting three conditions: 1. Greater than 45 trucks in the peak hour, 2. Trucks experience a 15 km/h speed reduction, and 3. Uphill traffic experiences Level-of-Service C or lower; Or There is economic justification for the climbing lane. 18
FINDINGS CLIMBING LANES + Based on Estimated 2024 Volumes Highway 881 Corridor Management Plan 16 northbound and 13 southbound grades would meet warrant for number of trucks and speed reduction Overall segment Level-of-Service would meet warrant Level-of-service warrant for individual grades not always met; however, analysis does not reflect cumulative effect of platoon formation along the corridor 19
PASSING/CLIMBING LANE PLACEMENT + Climbing lanes placed first + Passing lanes placed to establish desirable overall spacing, considering: Location of existing intersections, major accesses Location of horizontal curves Proximity of reduced speed zones Presence of sidehills and muskeg Balancing northbound and southbound directions 20
PASSING/CLIMBING LANE PLACEMENT + Type and Number of Lanes in Three Stages + An average 8 km spacing ultimately achieved + At 100 km/h, passing opportunity every 6 minutes 21
ACCESS MANAGEMENT + Purpose: Consistency Safety Traffic Flow Planning & Stakeholder Information Highway 881 Corridor Management Plan 22
ANALYSIS ACCESS MANAGEMENT + Identified four access treatments for existing intersections: Retain, Close, Assess in Future, Long-Term Intersection Location + Minimum intersection Spacing 1.6 km, 3.2 km desirable 23
FINDINGS ACCESS MANAGEMENT + Average intersection spacing 3.7 km to 4.0 km + Largely prescribed by climbing/passing lane placement 24
SAFETY REST AREAS + Purpose Reduce driver fatigue; improve highway safety Improve driver comfort, including emergency stops Meet the needs and legislated requirements of the trucking industry 25
SAFETY REST AREAS + Provincial Policy Objectives: 60 minute spacing between Safety Rest Areas (SRA) 30 minute spacing from urban areas Ideally, serve only one direction of travel Typical layouts do not accommodate O-D loads Urban centres can serve as an SRA, however, not for O-D loads 26
ANALYSIS SAFETY REST AREAS + Warrant: Several criteria, including Highway 881 Corridor Management Plan Spacing, traffic volume and mix, safety, industrial need, weather, tourism Assessment reached 33 out of 40 points The emphasis was largely related to industrial need, the O-D loads, which are expected to drop off in the near term 27
FINDINGS SAFETY REST AREAS Highway 881 Corridor Management Plan + As a long-term two-lane facility, Highway 881 should target an average SRA spacing of 80 km + The typical SRA site plan was modified to accommodate two-way access and OD staging + Located on 2-lane highway sections for the passing/climbing lane stages 28
HIGHWAY TWINNING + Purpose: Defining a twinning concept will help the province to: Protected required right-of-way Implement access management 29
ANALYSIS HIGHWAY TWINNING + Constraints Affecting Side of Twinning: Highway 881 Corridor Management Plan Existing developments Existing highway geometry Intersections and access points Topography, particularly steep sidehills River crossings and other environmental features Rail crossings 30
FINDINGS HIGHWAY TWINNING Highway 881 Corridor Management Plan + Not warranted for upwards of 25 years + Major realignment options + Locations for early stage twinning + Most transitions located in horizontal curves 31
RECOMMENDATIONS + Short-to-Medium Term Two Safety Rest / Over-Dimensional Staging Areas Retain existing Roadside Turnouts at 50 km spacing Planning - Resolve alignment and access management issues 32
RECOMMENDATIONS + Medium-to-Long Term: Passing and Climbing Lanes (in 3 proposed stages) Existing roadside turnouts are retained where possible Minor highway realignments where warranted to accommodate passing/climbing lanes 33
RECOMMENDATIONS + Ultimate Stage: Highway Twinning Major Highway Realignments Two conventional southbound Safety Rest Areas, paired with the two northbound SRA/ODSA sites As traffic volumes increase, consider additional SRA s 34
THANK YOU QUESTIONS? 35
CONTACT INFORMATION + Henry Devos, P.Eng. Senior Planning Specialist, CIMA+ 780-297-2462 ext. 7161 henry.devos@cima.ca + John Morrall, PhD., P.Eng. President, Canadian Highways Institute Ltd. 403-239-3988 jmorrall@shaw.ca + René Rosvold, P.Eng. Transportation Planner, CIMA+ 403-775-0100 ext. 7620 rene.rosvold@cima.ca Highway 881 Corridor Management Plan 36
Tri-Party Transportation Conference Moving Alberta Into the Future Alberta Highway 881 Corridor Management Plan Lac La Biche to Anzac Session Forum 1 - Highways March 2017
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Typical Combined Safety Rest / Truck Staging Area Site Plan with Interim Two-Way Access 39