Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout4_Transportation and Infrastructure_Final 5-15-19 CLEAN Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update This document was prepared for the New York State Department of State with funds provided under Title 11 of the Environmental Protection Fund. Transportation & Infrastructure Final September 19, 2018 Updated May 15, 2019 (in collaboration with AKRF, Inc.) Transportation & Infrastructure i TABLE OF CONTENTS TO COME Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 1 PUBLIC AND PRIVATE TRANSPORTATION NETWORKS This chapter lays out Southold Town’s transportation challenges and provides an inventory of its current transportation systems that is used to recommend town-specific goals to improve traffic congestion, safety, and mobility for all users. This analysis does not include the Village of Greenport, though it does include the areas of Greenport West, which is outside the incorporated Village. Situated on a long and narrow peninsula, access to and from Southold Town is limited. Its road system consists of two major east-west arterial roadways, New York State Route 25 and Suffolk County Route 48, along with a series of collector roads that feed into the two main arteries. The Town is also served by rail, bus, and ferry. Fishers Island, located in Long Island Sound, about 12 miles from the main part of the Town, is not connected to the mainland by road but is served by a public ferry and an airport. EXISTING CONDITIONS STREETS Southold’s 378 miles of streets are owned by both public and private entities. As shown in Figure 4-1, most streets are publicly owned: 54 percent by the Town, 7 percent by the County, 7 percent by the State, and 3 percent (all on Plum Island) by the federal government. The portion of privately owned streets, at 29 percent, is high compared with the statewide average, where only 3 percent are privately owned, and compared with Suffolk County, where only 2.5 percent are privately owned. The high percentage of private streets in the Town is due in part to the configuration of numerous farm parcels along the main access roads, which are long tracts with most residential development generally occurring far from the main road. This creates long access roads that are generally kept in private ownership. There are also many private communities, mainly along the waterfront, that have kept their roads private to control access. Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 2 Figure 4-1. Ownership of Streets in the Southold Town For large trucks, there is a New York State-designated truck route to use in the area. Truck Route 25, as it is called, serves as a truck route through Southold Town and is diverted away from the smaller roads onto the four-lane County Road 48 between Aldrich Lane in Laurel and State Route 25 in Greenport West. These sections of County Route 48, as well as several connecting routes, are signed as the “Route 25 Truck Bypass Route.” Southold Town’s 12 bridges are maintained by various entities. The Town maintains two bridges (technically considered culverts due to their length)—Peconic Bay Boulevard over Brushes Creek and Bay Avenue over Marion Lake. The bridge on Bridge Lane over the railroad is maintained by the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR). The New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) maintains three New York State Route 25 bridges, those that cross Mill Creek, the railroad, and Dam Pond Channel. Suffolk County maintains a number of bridges in the Town, including the New Suffolk Avenue bridges over West Creek, Downs Creek, and Mud Creek; the Grand Avenue bridge over Mattituck Creek, Oaklawn Avenue bridge over Jockey Creek, and North Bayview Road bridge over Goose Creek. SIDEWALKS There are 28 miles of sidewalks in Southold Town. These are broken down by hamlet, as shown in Figure 4-2. There are several locations in the Town where gaps in the sidewalk network exist. Gaps in the sidewalk networks of more densely developed places were identified and are shown in Figure 4-3. MULTI-USE PATHS AND BICYCLE ROUTES Southold Town contains a variety of hiking trails and paths to accommodate a range of users, including pedestrians, runners, cyclists, and horseback riders. The locations and extent of the trails and paths in each hamlet are shown in Figure 4-4. Southold Town also has 85 miles of bicycle routes, which are marked by signs along the roads. The majority of bike route miles are in the Town’s Seaview Trails system, with NYSDOT Bike Route 25 also providing significant mileage (see Figure 4-5). Town, 54% County, 7% State, 7% Federal , 3% Private, 29% Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 3 RAIL Southold Town has two LIRR stations, located in the hamlets of Mattituck and Southold. Each station provides service to Penn Station four times a day. The end of the Ronkonkoma line is in the nearby Village of Greenport, and is a popular destination. The Greenport station serves the eastern end of Town. According to the 2016 LIRR Ridership Book, daily ridership on the Ronkonkoma Branch east of Ronkonkoma is approximately 240 per day in both directions combined. On weekend days, daily ridership is approximately 160 in both directions combined. On weekend days during the summer months, daily ridership is approximately 570 in both directions combined. LIRR added more service to the North Fork in 2017 and 2018. BUS Southold Town is served by the Suffolk County Transit bus No. S92 and the Hampton Jitney, a private bus operator. The Suffolk County Transit app allows users to see where the bus is and when it will arrive. S92 Bus. The S92 runs from Orient to East Hampton, making 25 stops in Southold Town. Buses typically run once every 15 minutes in the westbound direction during the morning peak of 5:00 AM to 7:00 AM, and once every 25 minutes in the eastbound direction during the evening peak of 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM. As of 2015, annual ridership was approximately 400,000. Hampton Jitney. There are 10 Hampton Jitney bus stops in Southold Town. Westbound buses run approximately once every 1 to 2 hours in the morning on weekdays from Greenport to Manhattan between 4 AM and 9 AM, and approximately once every 1 to 2 hours between 5 PM and 9 PM from Manhattan to Greenport. The Hampton Jitney also serves hamlets east of Greenport, but with less frequency. On weekends, there are departures once every 2 to 3 hours on Saturday and every 1 to 2 hours on Sunday, with less frequent service from Orient. From Manhattan, there are departures once every 1 to 2 hours on Saturday and every 2 hours on Sunday. FERRY The Town’s ferry routes include the Cross Sound Ferry, the Fishers Island Ferry, and the North Dock Ferry. The Cross Sound Ferry Terminal (located at Orient Point) is operated by a private ferry company and connects Long Island with New London, Connecticut. This ferry is frequently used in tandem with the North Ferry as a cut-through from New England to the South Fork, which adds to tourist traffic in the Town. As of 2014, the annual ridership of the Cross Sound Ferry was approximately 1.1 million passengers and 462,000 vehicles. Fishers Island Ferry Dock (located on Fishers Island). Fishers Island Ferry is a public ferry company operated through a special district within the Town of Southold connecting Fishers Island with New London, Connecticut. As of 2017, the annual ridership of the Fishers Island Ferry was approximately 115,000 passengers and 36,000 vehicles. Note that in addition to the public ferry, commuter boats run regularly between Noank, Connecticut and West Harbor on the Fishers Island North Ferry Dock (located in the Village of Greenport). The North Ferry is operated by a private ferry company and connects the North Fork with Shelter Island. The ferry is frequently used in tandem with the South Ferry from Shelter Island to reach the South Fork instead of going all the way to Riverhead to drive around, or for going from the South Fork to the North Fork to the Cross Sound Ferry. As of 2013, the annual ridership of the North Ferry Company was approximately 1.3 million and 732,000 vehicles. Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 4 TAXI AND RIDESHARING COMPANIES There are six taxi and ridesharing companies with addresses in the Town of Southold according to publicly available information. SEASONAL TOURIST TRANSPORTATION The Town of Southold, together with North Fork Promotion Council with a grant from New York State, has been working to create a tourist trolley or shuttle system to link with the railroad and tourist destinations to help reduce traffic on the roads. The feasibility of this was tested in a pilot project in 2017, and additional testing is expected in the future to determine the most efficient operational model. PARKING There are 31 parking facilities in the Town of Southold. Sixteen of these are considered recreational parking lots, with seven requiring permits to park from May 1 through November 1. Twelve are considered municipal parking lots. Twenty-seven of the lots are paved and four are unpaved. Parking facility locations are included in Appendix 2. AIRPORTS Of the airports located in Southold Town, only Elizabeth Field on Fishers Island is public. Mattituck Airport in Mattituck is a privately owned public use airport. Rose Field in Orient is a privately owned grass airstrip. Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 5 TRAFFIC OPERATIONS TRAFFIC VOLUMES The most common way to calculate annual growth on streets is to use annual average daily traffic (AADT) volumes by year to assess whether traffic has increased, and if so, by what percentage per year, on average. AADT uses actual traffic counts that are modified using daily and seasonal adjustment factors to show traffic volumes on a roadway segment during an average day in an average month. Because it is an average, it cannot be a predictor of traffic on any given day or month, especially given the seasonal changes in traffic volume. To better understand the seasonal changes, the Town will need to gather more continuous data on traffic. The AADT is useful to help understand current traffic trends throughout the Town and is an appropriate data set to calculate annual traffic growth for the purposes of this Comprehensive Plan. As shown in Table 4-1, the most up to date AADT traffic volumes were tabulated, and a town-wide average annual traffic background growth rate was calculated. This table shows that traffic volumes increased between 2014 and 2016 from approximately 113,000 to 117,000 vehicles, resulting in an annual growth rate of approximately 1.4 percent. A map of the 2016 AADT shows the volumes per road segment (see Figure 4-6). Notable aspects of Southold traffic include the following. Weekday traffic during the busy season can be up to 50 percent higher than the average month,1 whereas weekend traffic during the busy season can be up to 90 percent higher than the average month.2 Heavy-vehicle traffic accounts for approximately 6 percent of daily traffic on State Route 25 and County Route 48. This is a reasonable percentage since these are the principal arterials through the Town.2 Table 4-1. Average Annual Daily Traffic – State Route 25 and County Route 48 Roadway Segment Average Annual Daily Traffic 2014 2015 2016 NY State Route 25 South Jamesport Avenue (Laurel) to Sound Avenue (Mattituck) 14,449 14,407 14,237 Sound Avenue (Mattituck) to New Suffolk Road (Cutchogue) 14,040 13,578 13,568 New Suffolk Road (Cutchogue) to Tucker Lane (Southold) 13,202 12,602 12,593 Tucker Lane (Southold) to Route 114/3rd Street (Greenport) 7,539 7,626 8,013 Route 114 (Greenport) to Route 48 (Greenport West) 7,460 7,282 7,405 Route 48 (Greenport West) to Narrow River Road (Orient) 3,583 3,344 3,308 Narrow River Road (Orient) to Orient Point (Orient) 3,195 3,042 3,010 County Route 48 1000 Feet West of Cox Neck Road to Cox Neck Road (Mattituck) 12,248 12,231 12,169 Cox Neck Road (Mattituck) to Westphalia Road (Mattituck) - 13,013 12,971 Westphalia Road (Mattituck) to Wickham Avenue (Mattituck) - 14,264 14,218 Wickham Avenue (Mattituck) to Marys Road (Mattituck) - 16,269 16,217 Marys Road (Mattituck) to Elijahs Lane (Mattituck) - - 16,472 Elijahs Lane (Mattituck) to Depot Lane (Cutchogue) - 16,525 16,472 Depot Lane (Cutchogue) to Peconic Lane (Peconic) 13,741 15,294 15,245 Peconic Lane (Peconic) to Youngs Avenue (Southold) 12,293 14,346 14,775 Youngs Avenue (Southold) to Route 25 (Greenport West) 11,746 12,411 12,371 Total of all roadway segments in Town with available data from 2014 – 2016 113,496 116,163 116,694 Source: NYSDOT Traffic Volume Report 1 According to the NYSDOT 2017 Seasonal Adjustment Factors tables for all roads. 2 Based on NYSDOT data from 2016. Heavy vehicles are categorized as vehicles having six or more tires and include trucks and buses. Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 6 ROAD SAFETY Crash data were obtained from NYSDOT and the data for Southold Town from 2015 to 2017 showed that at 270 different intersections there were crashes, two of them fatal. Intersections with five or more crashes during this period were considered “high total crash intersections” because they represent the top 10 percent of all intersections with crashes. The majority of “high total crash intersections” were identified along either State Route 25 or County Route 48, as shown in Figure 4-7. A table showing high crash intersections is included in Appendix 2. None of the intersections in the Town experienced more than one pedestrian or bike crash within this period. Therefore, the Town can be considered a relatively safe destination for pedestrians and bicyclists compared with other Long Island communities. Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 7 FUTURE TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS NEEDS AND OPPORTUNITIES The following is an assessment of future transportation systems needs and opportunities based on the projected growth of residential and commercial development for each hamlet in Southold Town. TRAFFIC GROWTH PROJECTIONS Additional development in Southold Town is likely to occur, and with it will come more traffic. An estimate of this growth is provided in Chapter 3, “Land Use & Zoning,” and is the basis for projecting the potential traffic growth, should all the land available for development be developed. Figure 4-8 illustrates the total daily vehicle trips generated by current development and future development in each hamlet. As shown in Figure 4-8, new development will increase the amount of everyday traffic. T traffic congestion observed during weekends in the fall could become commonplace throughout the year. To prevent this, new growth strategies and transportation improvements to manage traffic congestion must be implemented. This could include a re-evaluation of the Town's zoning in terms of uses relative to the amount of traffic they generate. Chapter 3, “Land Use & Zoning,” includes more details on strategies for managing growth from a land use planning/zoning perspective. Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 8 Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 9 It should be noted that the commercial development numbers do not include traffic generated by farm stands, mainly because they are not typically located in commercial zoning districts. Farm stands can be significant traffic generators, however, depending on their size and business model. The numbers also do not take into account special events. The Town grants special event permits to landowners who want to hold events such as weddings or other celebrations. Many of the special event permits are for farms that use them as revenue-generators. These events, which appear to be increasing in number, can include hundreds of people and generate significant traffic, again depending on their size. In addition, there are large-scale events such as the Strawberry Festival in Mattituck and the Maritime Festival in Greenport that generate large amounts of traffic. New growth strategies are just one component of what is needed to prevent worsening traffic congestion. Throughout the Town, but particularly in areas where new commercial development could double the square footage of current commercial space, careful understanding and study of existing and future transportation safety, traffic congestion, and multimodal mobility issues are needed. These include walkability, pedestrian and bicycle safety, and speed reduction. Goals to accomplish this are presented below. GOALS AND OBJECTIVES The following are goals to prevent the worsening of future traffic congestion and increase traffic safety as well as pedestrian and bicycle safety. 1. Reduce the traffic congestion experienced during the peak tourist season. One of the biggest issues in the Town is the constant weekend traffic congestion it suffers during the busy season. Historic traffic counts of data collected in the Town show that the summer and fall months have significantly higher traffic than average months. This spike in traffic volumes creates bottlenecks throughout the Town at many capacity-constrained intersections, but also creates long queues of traffic in the western parts of the Town between these congested intersections. This primarily occurs on Thursdays through Sundays when daily traffic is higher than average. This may also be in part due to second homeowners who use their second home more in the warmer months, and more on the weekends. There is no single cause for this recurring traffic congestion, nor is there an easy solution. The traffic in these queues is a mixture of tourists from outside the Town who are visiting vineyards, farm stands, pumpkin patches, or Christmas Tree farms; long-distance travelers using the ferry system to avoid I-95 or to reach the South Fork; tradespeople commuting to and from the South Fork via the North Ferry to avoid the traffic on County Route 39 in Southampton; town residents and business owners getting to work, social visits, shopping or restaurants; and public safety professionals such as police, fire, and ambulance workers. Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 10 The seasonal traffic has steadily risen over the years, and the lack of a robust transit, bicycle, or sidewalk system has not provided travelers with enough options. There will be challenges related to continued growth of residential and commercial development sectors, which could worsen traffic conditions if not managed and planned properly. A high number of “high crash locations” also exist, according to a safety study conducted as part of this chapter. Previous hamlet studies have recommended traffic-calming improvements to address many of these high crash locations, particularly those where State Route 25 runs through hamlet centers. The Town experiences near-gridlock conditions during the late summer and fall, particularly at the western end of Town. It can take two or three times as long to travel within the Town during these peak tourist conditions, an effect that causes frustration on behalf of the Town’s residents, businesses, and visitors. There are risks beyond the inconvenience of longer travel times, such as additional time for police, fire, and ambulance to respond to emergencies, plus losses in productivity for workers waiting in traffic. To better understand this phenomenon, additional data and studies are needed: a. Origin-Destination Studies: Conduct origin-destination studies to better understand the reasons for seasonal congestion. Origin-destination data using face-to-face intercept surveys is an accurate method of understanding travel patterns and mode choices. b. Continuous Traffic Count Stations: Install continuous traffic count stations on County Route 48, State Route 25, Peconic Bay Boulevard, and other key routes to better understand the seasonal fluctuations. Continuous traffic count stations collect daily traffic volumes by hour and by direction. They can be used to analyze and better understand seasonal and daily traffic variation, and traffic volumes can be compared along parallel routes to see if seasonal peak congestion on a certain route causes an increase on a parallel route, for instance. Data from the only continuous count location available in the Town on State Route 25 just east of the Town of Riverhead line shows distinct seasonal peak data in the summer months. This single station, however, is not enough to provide the complete picture, and more continuous count stations are recommended throughout the Town on major roads. c. Investigate traffic generation by special events and festivals. The Town needs more data to better understand the impacts of special events and festivals, particularly how small events affect traffic congestion when they occur simultaneously and even more so when they coincide with larger events. The Village of Greenport, while not included in this plan specifically, plays a significant role with regard to traffic in the Town. Special events in the Village such as its annual Maritime Festival generate significant traffic and the Town Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 11 and Village will need to continue to cooperate to address transportation impacts. d. Public Transit (LIRR): The infrequent train service in the Town does not motivate many people to use the train to travel to, from or within Southold. The Town should continue to work with other towns on the North Fork to petition LIRR to increase train service to help decrease the high auto mode share. Ninety-three percent of work trips in the Town are currently made by auto or taxi. There will be a growing need for additional train service to Mattituck, Southold, and Greenport stations as residential and commercial infill development occurs over time. Additionally, seasonal, temporary train stops could be added in Peconic or Cutchogue to increase transit use during peak season. The increase in taxi and ridesharing services will serve to increase the convenience of using public transit by providing a mode of travel from railroad stations and bus stops to destinations that are not within walking distance. The Town can also work to increase ridership at the local level by providing public education about the railroad schedule, and information about amenities such as parking, and bicycles being allowed on the train. e. Public Transit (Suffolk County Bus): Similar to train service, the infrequent bus service in the Town does not promote the use of public transit. The Town should petition Suffolk County to increase bus service to help decrease the high auto mode share. Ninety-three percent of work trips in the Town are currently made by auto or taxi. There will be a growing need for additional bus service between the hamlets as residential and commercial infill development occurs over time. f. Shuttles for Tourist Locations: The existing shuttle should be continued and expanded to encourage less personal vehicle travel between tourist locations, which will reduce seasonal peak traffic congestion. Designating official shuttle lots throughout the Town would increase utilization of the shuttle. Other shuttle links should be considered to connect satellite parking with hamlet centers. g. Additional Studies and Policies to Better Manage Tourist Season Traffic: Other survey data and observations are needed because there is little or no coordination among destinations to share rides or parking. Studies could monitor demand and congestion throughout the Town at different destinations and make policy recommendations to improve peak season traffic. h. Local Ferries or Water Taxis: Study feasibility of inter-hamlet water taxis, to include Riverhead, Shelter Island, and South Fork destinations. Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 12 Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 13 i. Improved Transportation Mode Connectivity: Evaluate options for improving the interconnectivity of various transportation modes at specific locations across entire Town. Look at each node's location and transportation options. Solutions such as schedule adjustments, cross- mode advertising, integrated smart phone apps, etc., should be considered. j. Transportation Tourism Marketing Plan: Use studies to define tourists' home markets. Then focus advertising there for transportation options to, from, and around North Fork destinations, with an emphasis on the advantages of leaving cars at home. To respond to the Town’s transportation challenges, the following policies are also recommended:  Monitor Truck Traffic: Truck traffic increases due to next-day delivery demand and industrial uses in the Town should be studied. Truck noise-reduction strategies such as putting signs up restricting engine braking along with enforcement of those signs should be considered. Also, truck weight and size restriction ordinances and signs should be considered along with enforcement of those signs because that strategy can be used to legally limit large trucks on selected local streets (with the exception of local deliveries).  Traffic Signal Optimization: The Town should also request that NYSDOT and Suffolk County Department of Public Works perform traffic signal optimization and progression studies to ensure signals they operate are providing appropriate signal timing for congested traffic conditions.  Discourage New Private Roads within the Town: Many older private roads are poorly maintained and not built to appropriate safety standards. To ensure future maintenance of safety standards, require streets in new subdivisions be public where appropriate. Require that any new private roads created within private residential areas are built and maintained to the Town’s standards. 2. Reduce future traffic congestion expected due to future development. a. Conduct a Town-wide Transportation Study: Conducting a town-wide study, including a highway capacity analysis at key intersections, to allow the Town to better understand and provide specific Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 14 measures that will allow smart, responsible growth to occur without worsening the traffic congestion. b. Require Multimodal Traffic and Transportation Studies of Large Developments: By requiring applicants with large developments to conduct multimodal transportation studies for large commercial developments, the Town can leverage the results to require traffic-calming, pedestrian safety, sidewalks, access management, and traditional traffic improvements from the applicants. 3. Increase pedestrian, cyclist, and traffic safety. a. Traffic-Calming Measures for Each Hamlet: During the Hamlet Stakeholder work that began in 2005, traffic calming was a universal concern among stakeholder, and continues to be a major issue for residents. Through the 2007-08 Hamlet Stakeholders Initiatives, the hamlets of Southold Town have requested that traffic-calming measures be implemented to improve the safety for all users on roads within their hamlets, and on State Route 25 in particular (which runs through the hamlet centers of Mattituck, Cutchogue, Southold, and East Marion). There are also reports of excessive speeding on County Route 48, particularly eastbound where it transitions from two lanes to four lanes. Some of the requested improvements are to increase sight distances at intersections, mark crosswalks more clearly, connect gaps in the sidewalk network, improve shoulders for biking, add streetscaping such as trees and benches, speed reduction measures and improved speed enforcement, prohibit road widening as a method of traffic congestion mitigation, install pedestrian refuge islands, add gateway treatments to announce residential/commercial areas to slow traffic, install roundabouts to slow speeding and reduce severe crashes, install traffic signals where warranted to increase safety or pedestrian crossing opportunities, and temporary street closures for pedestrian malls. These types of traffic calming/complete street improvements are appropriate for the unique character of Southold Town’s hamlets, and would be effective at increasing safety, cycling and walkability, and reducing high vehicle speeds, if implemented. By conducting a pedestrian, cyclist and traffic safety study for each hamlet, unique traffic calming measures can be developed and justified. The “toolbox” of traffic calming improvements will include low-cost measures. An example is a pedestrian refuge island, which provides a place to wait in the middle while crossing a two-way street and simultaneously narrows the street to slow oncoming traffic approaching crosswalks. As of June 2018, NYSDOT is conducting a study to implement a series of pedestrian safety improvements along State Route 25 in Nassau and Suffolk Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 15 Counties, including in Southold Town. Pedestrian safety improvements would consist of installing or upgrading traffic signals, rectangular rapid flashing beacons, new sidewalks, ADA-compliant curb ramps, new crosswalks, and pedestrian refuge islands. At this time, these are the only available details. These measures could supplement any future traffic calming measures that are implemented to reduce incidences of speeding and ensure safer pedestrian crossings along Southold Town’s main artery. The progress of these planned transportation improvements to State Route 25 will be monitored by the Town. b. Adopt a Complete Streets Policy: “Complete Streets” provides transportation design and policy to meet the needs and prioritize the safety of all users equally. Under this policy, speeding is reduced, bikes and pedestrians get the space they need, and access to transit is considered. The Town can leverage the policy when negotiating with private applicants, the County and the State, when discussing transportation improvements. Having a Complete Streets policy and following it will benefit safety for motorists, bicyclists and pedestrians. Traffic calming measures can be implemented to reduce incidences of speeding, and high crash locations, which are primarily located along the main arteries of State Route 25 and County Route 48 in the Town. There are low-cost options for the Town to pursue such as narrowing travel lanes when resurfacing roads to only 10 or 11 feet to reduce speeding, placing bike markings on marked, paved shoulders, or marking shoulders to allow pedestrian travel when sidewalks are not present. These are easily implemented and easy-to-maintain solutions the Town can pursue under a Complete Streets policy. c. Sidewalk Gaps: If sidewalks are available on both sides of the main roads within the hamlets, walkability will increase, and the Town, County, and State can stripe additional crosswalks. Filling sidewalk gaps could result in more walking and less vehicle travel for short trips. d. Promoting Non-motorized Travel as a Traffic Congestion Reduction Strategy: The safer and more comfortable pedestrians and cyclists feel, the more likely the Town residents, employees, and visitors will be to walk or bike on shorter trips. By increasing safety and building pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure, both future traffic congestion and parking demand could be reduced. 4. Expand bicycle network for enjoyment, health benefits, reducing congestion, and increasing road safety. a. Expand Bicycle Routes: Connect the hamlets better. By connecting hamlets and providing routes within hamlets, cycling will increase, a result that could potentially decrease Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 16 vehicular traffic. Another benefit of additional bicycle route and pavement markings is that motorists become more accustomed to cyclists, which in turn increases safety. b. Expand Multiuse Trails / Paths: Create more connections and build more paths through preserved lands. The Town can work with partners to bring more visitation and appreciation to natural resources. There are health and quality of life benefits for users of paths and trails. 5. Monitor management of aviation traffic and airport expansion The airports as they currently exist satisfy the Town’s demand for air travel. Careful understanding and study of private seaplane and helicopter use is recommended since it may not be currently regulated and may be on the increase. 6. Improve Curbside Management Practices Adopt Smart Parking Strategies In the long-term, should ride-sharing apps and autonomous vehicle technology continue to develop, it is anticipated that such technological developments would also continue to contribute to growth in vehicle miles traveled in Southold Town. Parking needs for certain land uses, however, might need to be reassessed as such vehicle trips would not require the vehicles to be parked on-site. Urging neighboring private parking lot owners to allow shared parking between compatible land uses can reduce the need for additional parking. Installing on- street and off-street regulations that encourage fast turnover adjacent to service- related commercial and slow turnover regulations adjacent to restaurant and residential will make existing parking more efficient. The Town could reassess its parking requirements for residential and commercial applications to make sure excessive parking is not being built. 7. Manage the Effects of Ferry Ridership on Traffic Conduct Ferry Use and Monitoring Studies: Both the Cross Sound and North Ferries generate a certain amount of traffic that passes through to and from other places outside the Town, which adds to the peak seasonal traffic congestion in both the Town and the Village. It is recommended that the ferry ridership and schedules be monitored. Depending on the results of the monitoring studies, the Town may recommend strategies to Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 17 work with the ferry operators and Village of Greenport to address traffic congestion and parking and queuing spillover into the Town. Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 18 INFRASTRUCTURE The purpose of the infrastructure portion of this chapter is to provide an understanding of the Southold Town’s utility infrastructure assets and challenges, and develop town- specific goals to improve utilities for current and uses and for the continued growth of the Town. An inventory and assessment of existing utility infrastructure is presented, and is followed by a set of goals for the Town to consider as it grows. EXISTING CONDITIONS STORMWATER Most of the Town has designated stormwater collection points and outlets. The collection points, or catch basins, are intermittently spread throughout the extents of the Town, some of which are interconnected by underground piping or via conveyance by use of at grade topography. All outlets are shown to be discharging into a designated a recharge area, local waterway, or directly into Long Island Sound. A map of the stormwater infrastructure in Southold Town is shown in Figure 4-9. SANITARY SEWER The only sewer districts in the Town are within the Village of Greenport (which is connected to parcels in the hamlets of Greenport West and Southold, as shown in the map in Figure 4-10) and in the hamlet of Fishers Island. The Village of Greenport’s sewage treatment plant sends treated effluent through an outfall pipe to the Long Island Sound. The Village of Greenport sanitary sewer system serves approximately 650 dwellings and an indeterminate amount of commercial square footage in Southold Town outside the Village. The capacity of the treatment plant is 0.650 million gallons per day (MGD), and is used at a rate of 0.350 MGD during the peak season and 0.200 MGD during the off- season. Roughly, there could be an 80 percent growth in use during the peak season and the plant would be able to handle the increase. The Fishers Island system serves 33 dwellings. The effluent is collected by gravity and pumped to a community-sized septic tank and leaching field. Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 19 WATER (Suffolk County Water Authority [SCWA] & Fishers Island Waterworks Co.) The Town has approximately 208 miles of water main lines, as shown in Figure 4-11. Information provided by the SCWA3 shows a significant amount of coverage within the limits of the Town. Of the areas sampled from the record maps, all contain fire hydrant coverage and the necessary piping to feed the system. SCWA does not provide service to Fishers Island since it has its own water supply operated by the Fishers Island Waterworks Company, consisting of approximately 22 miles of water main lines. ELECTRICITY (The Long Island Power Authority [LIPA] and its Service Provider Public Service Enterprise Group [PSEG]) According to observations, electrical service is widely available throughout the Town via overhead transmission wires, and through underground lines in newer developments. Fishers Island has a separate power company, the Fishers Island Utility Company, that provides electricity to the island residents. NATURAL GAS (National Grid) According to observations, natural gas main lines follow State Route 25 and County Route 48; however, natural gas is not widely available to many residents. Other details and locations about natural gas lines could not be provided and shared in this plan due to security concerns from the utility company. COMMUNICATIONS (Cable, Telephone, Broadband, and Wireless) The majority of the Town is documented as having available service by at least two providers: Cablevision/Optimum and Verizon. Several isolated areas within the hamlets of Laurel/Mattituck, Southold, and Orient are shown to have Cablevision/Optimum as the sole provider. High-speed internet data service (also known as broadband) is available from Cablevision with coverage throughout the Town at speeds of up to 300 megabits per second, while Verizon has sub-broadband data speeds of 1.5 to 3 megabits per second with little coverage in the Town. In addition to broadband coverage at acceptable speeds, the Cablevision website shows the locations of seven wifi hotspots available to their customers throughout the Town. These hotspots are in Mattituck/Laurel, two in Cutchogue, Peconic, Southold, East Marion, and Orient. High-speed internet service on Fishers Island is available through the Fishers Island Telephone Corporation. There are 16 wireless facilities in Southold Town, located in the hamlets of Cutchogue, East Marion, Fishers Island, Mattituck/Laurel, Orient, Peconic, and Southold. Wireless 3 With the exception of Fishers Island, the Town has approximately 8,700 customers on SCWA water, leaving more than 6,000 households on well water. Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 20 service is available in most of the Town, although service is weak in many areas, and there are pockets of the Town without any cell service. The wireless antennas are located mainly on a series of towers throughout the Town, with some located within church steeples. Many cell tower locations have added, or are in the process of adding, generators to be able to continue service during power outages. Goals and Objectives The Town has significant coverage for developed areas by electrical, water, and wired communications utilities. Sanitary sewer, natural gas, and wireless communications utilities are less prevalent. Sanitary sewer lines connected to a treatment plan only exist in a small part of the Town in the hamlets of West Greenport and Southold because they are connected to the Village of Greenport’s sanitary sewer system. There are only 16 cellular towers covering the Town, which results in weak or no wireless service in parts of the Town. In addition, while natural gas mains follow portions of State Route 25 and County Route 48, service is not available beyond those corridors. The potential future increases in residential and commercial development will require an increase in the supporting infrastructure. To accommodate this potential growth, goals follow for each, though most of these goals will rely on the providers of the services to achieve. STORMWATER The Town strictly regulates stormwater runoff, and all new development is required to contain its stormwater runoff on-site with appropriate infrastructure. As development in the Town increases, there will be an expected increase in impermeable surfaces such as new streets, parking lots, and buildings. The increases in impermeable areas will be monitored so that upgrades to existing inlets and outlets can be planned. Additional curbside drainage structures may also be required to further mitigate additional stormwater that is collected in and around future localized developments. In addition to traditional stormwater capture and treatment infrastructure, green infrastructure technologies are recommended. According to Chapter 6, “Natural Resources & Environment,” to address non-point pollution, the Town is working to integrate green infrastructure such as vegetated swales into drainage designs. SANITARY SEWER Due to the cost of construction and maintenance, as well as concerns over inducing too much growth, extending public sewer may not be feasible. An alternative is to treat sewage effluent on site or in small community systems. Improved monitoring of existing sewers and shared septic systems should be considered. Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 21 WATER - SCWA & FISHERS ISLAND WATERWORKS As the buildout of the Town continues, water model evaluations may be necessary to evaluate the capacity of the system and whether it warrants any holding tanks, booster pump stations, etc. The Town should monitor SCWA and Fishers Island Waterworks water supply, and if the utilities or their supply cannot keep up with the needs of the Town, should consider investigating ways to reduce water use by collecting rainwater for lawn irrigation purposes, gray water recycling, and other sustainable water strategies. ELECTRICITY The local service providers will have to extend and possibly upgrade their already present service to further facilitate future localized developments and improvements. NATURAL GAS Natural gas is a desirable alternative fuel for home heating and cooking, and encouraging the provider to expand its availability in the Town is recommended. SOLAR/RENEWABLE ENERGY Continue to explore alternative energy sources, including solar, wind, and tidal energy resources to supplement current energy sources, and to provide redundancy in case of failure, cost increases, or other issues with the primary energy source. Expand the inventory of electric vehicle-charging stations in the Town. COMMUNICATIONS (Cable, Telephone, Broadband, and Wireless) The local service providers will have to extend and upgrade their already present service to further facilitate future localized developments and improvements. In addition, wireless providers will need to adapt and improve their service as data streaming continues to increase. Wireless connectivity is generally fair to poor and even non-existent in some parts of the Town. In the summer, the service worsens due to the volume of users.