Completed for the City of Urbana by the Champaign County Regional Planning Commission In cooperation with Illinois Department of Transportation Champaign County Highway Department Urbana Township Somer Township University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign This study was made possible by a grant from the Illinois Tomorrow Corridor Planning Grant Program Volume 1 of 2 IL130/High Cross Road CORRIDOR PLAN Prepared by the Champaign County Regional Planning Commission for the City of Urbana This study was made possible by a grant to the City of Urbana from the Illinois Tomorrow Corridor Planning Grant Program sponsored by the State of Illinois. Local funding for the study was contributed by the City of Urbana, Champaign County Regional Planning Commission, Champaign County Highway Department, Urbana Township, and Somer Township Corridor Study Steering Committee Elizabeth Tyler, City of Urbana Community Development Director William Gray, City of Urbana Public Works Director Gale Jamison, City of Urbana Assistant City Engineer Robert Myers, City of Urbana Planning Director Jeff Blue, Champaign County Highway Engineer Pamela Voitik, University of Illinois Director of Campus Services Jim Prather, Urbana Township Road Commissioner Rick Wolken, Somer Township Road Commissioner Ken Mathis, Somer Township Supervisor Dennis Markwell, Illinois Department of Transportation District 5 Engineer Sharon White, Corridor Resident Representative Corridor Study Staff John Dimit, Champaign County Regional Planning Commission CEO Rita Morocoima-Black, CCRPC/CUUATS Transportation Manager Susan Chavarria, CCRPC/CUUATS Associate Transportation Planner Eunah Kang, CCRPC/CUUATS Associate Transportation Planner Ahmed Mohideen, CCRPC/CUUATS Associate Transportation Engineer M. Sharif Ullah, CCRPC/CUUATS Associate Transportation Engineer Mary Cummings, CCRPC/CUUATS Administrative Secretary April 2007 Table of Contents 1 Introduction ........................................................................................................ 1-1 1.1 Background .............................................................................................. 1-1 1.2 Study Purpose ........................................................................................... 1-1 1.3 Study Methodology ................................................................................... 1-3 2 Planning Process ................................................................................................. 2-1 2.1 Involve the Public ...................................................................................... 2-1 2.2 Inventory Existing Conditions ...................................................................... 2-1 2.3 Consider Existing Plans and Policies ............................................................ 2-2 2.4 Determine Issues ....................................................................................... 2-2 2.5 Develop Goals and Objectives ................................................................... 2-3 2.5.1 Objectives ................................................................................... 2-3 2.6 Forecast Population and Employment ......................................................... 2-4 2.6.1 Population Forecasts .................................................................... 2-4 2.6.2 Employment Forecasts .................................................................. 2-5 2.7 Model Existing and Future Conditions ......................................................... 2-5 2.8 Develop Alternatives for the Future ............................................................. 2-6 2.8.1 Strings & Ribbons Workshops ....................................................... 2-6 2.8.2 Processing the Strings & Ribbons Alternatives ................................. 2-6 2.8.3 Strings & Ribbons Part Two ........................................................... 2-6 2.9 Refining Options and Identifying a Preferred Alternative ................................ 2-7 2.9.1 Public Evaluation of the Preferred Alternative .................................. 2-9 2.10 Develop an Implementation Plan ............................................................ 2-11 2.11 Create Benchmarks for Implementation Success ...................................... 2-11 3 Existing Conditions 3.1 Demographics and Land Use ..................................................................... 3-1 3.1.1 Base Year (2000) ........................................................................ 3-1 3.1.2 Horizon Year 2025 ...................................................................... 3-4 3.2 Neighborhood Concerns ........................................................................... 3-7 3.3 Environmental Factors ............................................................................... 3-7 3.3.1 Topography and Geology ............................................................ 3-7 3.3.2 Soil ............................................................................................. 3-7 3.3.3 Wetlands .................................................................................... 3-8 3.3.4 Air Quality .................................................................................. 3-8 3.3.5 Noise ......................................................................................... 3-9 3.3.6 Water Quality ............................................................................. 3-9 3.3.7 Wildlife and Vegetation Habitat .................................................. 3-10 3.3.8 Visual Quality ............................................................................ 3-10 3.3.9 Light Pollution ........................................................................... 3-10 i Table of Contents 3.4 Transportation Network ........................................................................... 3-11 3.5 Traffic Volumes ....................................................................................... 3-12 3.6 Safety: Crashes ....................................................................................... 3-17 3.7 Travel Model .......................................................................................... 3-19 3.8 Origin-Destination Survey ........................................................................ 3-19 3.9 Current Transportation Plans .................................................................... 3-19 3.10 Existing Conditions Analysis .................................................................... 3-20 3.11 Demographics and Land Use ................................................................. 3-20 3.11.1 Population .............................................................................. 3-20 3.11.2 Employment ............................................................................ 3-20 3.11.3 Land Use ................................................................................ 3-20 3.12 Neighborhood Concerns ....................................................................... 3-21 3.13 Environmental Analysis .......................................................................... 3-21 3.13.1 Air Quality .............................................................................. 3-21 3.13.2 Noise ..................................................................................... 3-22 3.13.3 Wildlife and Vegetation Habitat ................................................ 3-22 3.14 Transportation Analysis .......................................................................... 3-23 3.14.1 Roadway Characteristics ........................................................... 3-23 3.14.2 Safety: Crash Locations ............................................................ 3-23 3.14.2.1 Intersections ............................................................... 3-27 3.14.2.2 Segments................................................................... 3-27 3.14.3 Capacity and Level of Service Analysis ....................................... 3-28 3.14.3.1 Intersection Capacity Analysis ...................................... 3-28 3.14.3.2 Segment Capacity Analysis .......................................... 3-31 3.14.4 Access Management ................................................................ 3-33 3.14.5 Transit .................................................................................... 3-36 3.14.6 Bikes and Pedestrians ............................................................... 3-36 3.14.7 Travel Model ........................................................................... 3-36 3.14.8 Origin and Destination Survey .................................................. 3-40 4 Future Conditions................................................................................................ 4-1 4.1 The Preferred Alternative ............................................................................ 4-1 4.2 Preferred Alternative vs. No Build Alternative ............................................... 4-1 4.2.1 Transportation ............................................................................. 4-1 4.2.1.1 Mobility ......................................................................... 4-3 4.2.1.2 Safety ............................................................................ 4-3 4.2.2 Environment ................................................................................ 4-3 4.2.2.1 Air Quality ..................................................................... 4-3 4.2.2.2 Noise ...........................................................................