| Description |
Street Connectivity is measured through intersection density in study neighborhoods along the Wasatch Valley in Utah to better determine the significance street connectivity has on common traffic issues. The two traffic issues which are compared and contrasted with a more connected street system and a less connected street system is traffic congestion, measured here as delay in minutes, and the number of collisions within a study neighborhood. Intersection density was measured by the number of intersections within a chosen neighborhood study area by the Square miles in that same study area. Delay in minutes was determined using iPEMS data and average minutes in delay across a two-month period along collector and aerial streets within the neighborhood study areas. Collisions were measured by accessing Utah Department of Transportation crash data on all vehicle crashes on public roads which were submitted to the Department of Public Safety by all public safety agencies in Utah. A linear regression analysis was conducted to determine the relationship between vehicle collision, delay, other traffic variables, and intersection density. A comparison between study areas in close proximity to each other is also discussed, the focus for the comparison is the differences in street design networks and the affect these street network designs have on crash rates and traffic delay. more commercial types of structures, constructed from reinforced concrete is 60 years (O'Connor, 2004). Street connectivity and specifically this study is important to communities as it is an analysis of how street connectivity can affect travel of those within the street network. Planned streets are important to communities as street networks are permanent fixtures in the community but it is not fully understood how the street network design impacts the functionality, safety, and livability of a community. There has been growing recognition in the importance of street connectivity in transportation planning as more and more communities along the Wasatch front have enacted their own street connectivity standards within their City Ordinances. This is in part a response toward increasing congestion in the valley, as well as a growing number of studies which look at improving and measuring street connectivity in commercial and residential areas (WFRC, 2017). This study focuses on the impact street connectivity has on the safety those who use these public spaces, it also focuses on the congestion and delay of a street network. This study is also an attempt at quantifying some of these impacts as they relate to intersection density, traffic delay, and the probability of vehicle collisions in differing types of street networks and comparing some of those impacts. |
