5.20 Roadway Capacity (RC)
ISSUE
RC‐1
Roadway capacity relates to the ability of existing freeways, highways,
arterials, and other local roads to provide adequate mobility and access
between military installations and their surrounding communities.
As urban development expands into rural areas, roads once used primarily to
provide access for agricultural uses and limited local traffic begin to function
as urban major arterial roadways. These once rural roads often become the
main transportation corridors for all types of traffic – from residential to
commercial trucking – and can assist or impede access to military
installations. As transportation systems grow and provide more capacity,
these facilities induce and encourage growth as rural areas become more
accessible.
Key Terms
Roadway Capacity. Roadway capacity refers to the ability of existing
freeways, highway, arterials and other local roads to provide adequate
mobility and access among military installations and their surrounding
communities.
Insufficient Queuing Area at Main Gate on Berkeley
Blvd.
Access to Seymour Johnson AFB during peak periods and
reservist weekends causes traffic stacking on public
roads. The primary gate located off South Berkeley Blvd.
is the most widely used access point but has limited
room for vehicle stacking. This lack of space can cause
traffic to back up on South Berkeley Blvd. creating a
safety hazard.
Compatibility Assessment
When traffic congestion occurs, military mission activities may be delayed,
resulting in lost productive hours. In addition, traffic congestion can also
affect the surrounding community if vehicle queuing at the gate extends out
to public roads and intersections causing traffic delays and posing risks to the
health and safety of motorists. The DOD provides specific standards
associated with the proper queuing and stacking of vehicles, which have been
established to allow for this activity to take place largely within the
installation property.
In addition to potential safety and traffic flow problems which can be
associated with vehicles stopping on roadways, it can also create issues with
force protection and anti‐terrorism measures. Since 2011, the DOD
encourages vehicle queuing on installation property to reduce the threat risk
of terrorist acts.
Within an entry control or gate, the Approach Zone is designated for vehicle
queueing, though the amount of area afforded for this zone is generally
based on the amount of available land. The intent of this area is to minimize
excessive queuing of vehicles on adjacent highways and roads. The Approach
Zone is also used for vehicle sorting, i.e. trucks versus employee vehicles, and
Background Report
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