Driveway Access Spacing Considerations for Rural Highways with High Truck Volumes

Abstract

Increased traffic and heavy truck percentages associated with energy exploration in West Texas have placed unprecedented demands on the region’s highway network as well as driveway access to and from that network. Access management principles have proven to be effective in improving operations and safety in numerous locations, but many of those locations have been in urban or suburban locations where land uses and traffic patterns are different from those typically found in rural West Texas, so guidelines for driveway spacing and other access management treatments in rural, high-speed areas are not as commonplace. This paper describes the study of a corridor with high volumes, high truck percentages, high speeds, high turning volumes, and high demand for access. The study team reviewed the applicable guidelines and policies for driveway spacing in Texas, as well as relevant findings from other guidelines and research, to develop a set of recommended driveway spacing values for cars and for trucks on high-speed rural roads.