The appropriate use of access management can substantially reduce congestion while simultaneously enhancing safety. As a result, it is no surprise that the Oregon transportation community could greatly benefit from an Oregon Access Management Best Practices Manual. Though this document would ultimately target the state of Oregon, the principles identified in the document have a global application. Several publications currently exist regarding available access management strategies. These documents include manuals for the states of Florida and Colorado as well as the 2003 Access Management Manual by the Transportation Research Board. Unfortunately, little is known about the actual outcomes of applying these strategies as they are often constructed with little attempt at assessment. In addition, the jurisdictions for which current access management guidelines exist do not have the robust bicycle and pedestrian system common in Oregon, and so do not fully address the integration... View Full Summary

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The appropriate use of access management can substantially reduce congestion while simultaneously enhancing safety. As a result, it is no surprise that the Oregon transportation community could greatly benefit from an Oregon Access Management Best Practices Manual. Though this document would ultimately target the state of Oregon, the principles identified in the document have a global application. Several publications currently exist regarding available access management strategies. These documents include manuals for the states of Florida and Colorado as well as the 2003 Access Management Manual by the Transportation Research Board. Unfortunately, little is known about the actual outcomes of applying these strategies as they are often constructed with little attempt at assessment. In addition, the jurisdictions for which current access management guidelines exist do not have the robust bicycle and pedestrian system common in Oregon, and so do not fully address the integration of the access management best practices with bicycle, pedestrian, and transit facilities. This proposed research effort will identify access management strategies, formulate known assessment methods, develop additional assessment methods, summarize appropriate data collection strategies for future access management project assessments, and then develop a “best practices” to assure the investment into access management produces quantifiable results. The resulting Oregon Access Management Best Practices Manual will be used by decision makers responsible for making informed system management decisions, engineers designing new or retro-fitted projects, and educators teaching fundamental transportation access management concepts. The ultimate goal of this proposed research effort is therefore to provide a tool that enables the application of access management techniques effectively with credible results that can be documented by state and local transportation agencies.

ODOT Research Unit

Project Type: Research
Start Date: October 1, 2007
End Date: January 31, 2010
Related Projects: None
Research Area: Integration of Land Use and Transportation