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HomeMy WebLinkAbout4_Transportation and Infrastructure_Final 5-15-19 RedLine 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 DraftFinal September 19, 2018 Updated March 18May 15, 2019 (in collaboration with AKRF, Inc.) Transportation & Infrastructure i TABLE OF CONTENTS TO COME Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY TRANSPORTATION This chapter provides an inventory and assessment of existing transportation systems and infrastructure, and an assessment of the future transportation needs and opportunities. The future conditions are divided into two sections. The first section discusses planned/expected changes such as currently-proposed projects and previously- recommended traffic calming improvements, and the continuation of current trends like tourist season traffic congestion, annual traffic growth, truck traffic growth due to next- day delivery demand, and the proliferation of ride-sharing travel using smartphone apps. The second section presents the additional traffic growth that could materialize should the buildout of available parcels within the Town be developed under existing zoning. The chapter also includes goals, many of which are specific recommendations the Town can consider implementing to improve future transportation and safety conditions. The first set of goals responds to the current seasonal traffic congestion. There are also goals for developers to conduct transportation studies for large commercial developments to mitigate project-generated traffic congestion and provide accessibility for pedestrians, bicyclists and transit. In addition, there are goals to implement complete street/safety improvements, connect and expand sidewalk, bike and trail networks, improve transit service, and consider forward-thinking parking policies. Many of the goals recommend better data gathering. This is necessary because good recommendations rely on good information. UTILITY INFRASTRUCTURE Similar to transportation systems and infrastructure, this chapter provides an inventory and assessment of existing utility infrastructure in the Town. The utility infrastructure portion of this chapter presents goals to improve existing conditions, but also to address future conditions based on additional growth. Utility infrastructure assessments for communications, stormwater, sanitary sewer, water, electricity, and natural gas are presented. PUBLIC AND PRIVATE TRANSPORTATION NETWORKS INTRODUCTION The transportation portion of the Transportation and Infrastructureis chapter provides anlays out understanding of the Town of Southold Town’s transportation challenges and provides an inventory of its current transportation systems that is used to recommend Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 2 Ttown-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,The Town of access to and from Southold Town’s is geography as a peninsula limiteds the access to and from the Town. ItsThe road system consists of two major east-west arterial roadways, New York State Route 25 and Suffolk County Route 48, along withas well as a series of collector roads that feed into theose two main corridorsarteries. The Town is also served by rail, bus, and ferry. Fishers Island, located in the 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. Aa public ferry and an airport serve the island. INVENTORY AND ASSESSMENT EXISTING CONDITIONS EXISTING TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS AND TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE This section describes the inventory and assessment of existing transportation systems in the Town of Southold, not including the Village of Greenport. Where appropriate, statistics have been provided by hamlet. For simplicity, the hamlets have been shown in alphabetical order. Details about data sources can be found in the Appendix. STREETS Southold’s There are 378 miles of streets in the Town of Southoldare owned by both public and private entities. As shown in Figure 4-1, Street ownership: Figure 1 below illustrates the ownership distribution of the streets in Southold Town. Mmost streets are publicly -owned:, with 54 percent% owned by the Town, 7 percent by the County, and 7 percent by the State, and. 3 percent of streets, (all on Plum Island), are owned by the federal government. The portion of privately owned streetsthat is privately owned, at 29 percent%, is high compared to with the statewide averageNew York State, where only 3 percent are privately owned, and compared withto 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 numerouslong farm parcels along the main access roads, which are long tracts with most residential development generally occurring on the opposite endfar from the main roads, usually along the water, with the farm area being preserved by development rights sale. 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 3 Figure 4-1. Ownership of Streets in the Town of 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 the Southold Town . Most of Truck Route 25and is diverted away fromin the smaller roads Town is ontoon the four-lane County Route Road 48 between Aldrich Lane in Laurel and NY State Route 25 in Greenport West. These sections of County Route 48, as well as several connecting routes such as Aldrich Lane and Moore’s Lane, are signed as the “Route 25 Truck Bypass Route,.” which diverts truck traffic around the downtown area in the Village of Greenport. There are twelveSouthold Town’s 12 bridges in the Town of Southoldare 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 crossover Mill Creek, the railroad, and Dam Pond Channel. Suffolk County maintains a number of bridges in the Town, including theree New Suffolk Avenue bridges over West Creek, Downs Creek, and Mud Creek;, one the Grand Avenue bridge over Mattituck Creek, one Oaklawn Avenue bridge over Jockey Creek, and one North Bayview Road bridge over Goose Creek. SIDEWALKS There are 28 miles of sidewalks in the Town of Southold Town., and tThese are broken down by hamlet, as shown in Figure 4-2. There are several locations in the Town where there are gaps in the sidewalk network. Gaps in the sidewalk networks of more densely developed places with denser development 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. The Town of Southold Town also has 85 miles of bicycle routes, which are marked by signs along the Town, 54% County, 7% State, 7% Federal , 3% Private, 29% Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 4 roads. The majority of bike route miles are in the Town’s Seaview Trails system, with the NYSDOT Bike Route 25 also providing significant mileage (see. The bicycle routes are shown in Figure 4-5). Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 5 Public transit within the Town of Southold consists of the Long Island Rail Road, and the Suffolk County Transit Bus system. Two ferries provide access to and from the Town. Fishers Island is the exception, having only one public ferry as access, as well as a municipal airport. RAIL The Town of Southold Town has two Long Island Rail RoadLIRR 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 Long Island Rail RoadLIRR 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. The LIRRLIRR added more service to the North Fork in 2017 and 2018. BUS The Town of Southold Town is served by bFIgure oththe Suffolk County Transit bus No. S92es and the Hampton Jitney, a private bus operator. There is a Suffolk County Transit app that allows users to see where the bus is and when it will arrive. S92 Bus. The S92 runs from Orient to East Hampton, makingThere are a total of 25 Suffolk County Transit bus stops in the Town of 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. This route, the S92, runs from Orient to East Hampton. As of 2015, annual ridership was approximately 400,000. Hampton Jitney. There are a total of 10 Hampton Jitney bus stops in the Town of 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 per 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). Cross Sound Ferry 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 topeak tourist traffic toin 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, and connectings 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, there Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 6 are commuter boats that 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. TAXI AND RIDE-SHARING COMPANIES There are 6 six taxi and ride sharing 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 7 seven of those requiring permits to park from May 1 through November 1. Twelve 12 are considered municipal parking lots. 27 Twenty-seven of the lots are paved andlots, with 4 four are unpaved. Tables showing pParking facility locations are included in the Appendix 2. AIRPORTS Of the airports located in Southold Town, only Elizabeth Field on Fishers Island is a public. Mattituck Airport in Mattituck is a privately owned public use airport. Rose Field in Orient is a privately owned grass airstrip. airport Mattituck Airport in Mattituck is a privately owned public use airport Rose Field is a privately-owned grass airstrip in Orient SAFETY Crash data were obtained from NYSDOT.  Based on NYSDOT data from 2015 to 2017 for the Town of Southold, there were crashes at 270 different intersections. Intersections with 5 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 Route 25 or Route 48, as shown in Figure 6. A table of high crash intersections is included in the Appendix.  Two vehicular crashes at two intersections resulted in fatalities during that period.  None of the intersections in the Town of Southold experienced more than one pedestrian or bike crash within this period. Considering all intersections within the Town experienced either zero or one pedestrian or bike crash over the most recent three-year period of available data Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 7 means that the Town is a relatively safe destination for pedestrians and bicyclists compared to other Long Island communities. Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 8 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 below, the most up to date AADT traffic volumes were tabulated, and a Ttown-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 4-67). 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 9 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 10 ASSESSMENT OF 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 the Town of Southold Town. TRAFFIC GROWTH PROJECTIONS Additional development in Southold Town is likely to occur, and with that it will come more traffic. An estimate of this growth is provided in this plan’sChapter 3, “Land Use & Zoning,”chapter, and is the basis for projecting the potential traffic growth, should all the land available for developmentland 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 and it is possible that the type of traffic congestion observed to occur during fall 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. The Chapter 3, “Land Use & Zoning,”chapter of this plan has includes more details on strategies for managing growth from a land use planning/zoning perspective. Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 11 Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 12 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 a 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 within a hamlet, a 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. TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM 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 home-ownershomeowners who use their second home more in the warmer months, and more on the weekends. There is no single cause of for or solution to 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 CRCounty Route 39 in Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 13 Southampton;, Ttown residents and business owners getting to work, social visits, shopping or restaurants;, and public safety professionals such as police, fire, and ambulance workers. 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. There are also aA 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 NY 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 thatwhich 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, NY 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 many small events affect traffic congestion Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 14 when they occur simultaneously, and even more so when they coincide with the larger events. The Village of Greenport, while not included in this plan specifically, plays a significant role with regard to traffic in the Town. While future growth in development is not expected to generate a lot more traffic due to their goals being to encourage limited targeted infill and redevelopment of existing properties,3 sSpecial events in the Village such as the its annual Maritime Festival generate significant traffic and the Town and Village will need to continue to cooperate to address transportation impacts. d. Public Transit (LIRR): The sparse 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 sparse 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 the hamlet centers. 3 Village of Greenport 2014 Local Waterfront Revitalization Program report. Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 15 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 16 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 modes available at each locationoptions. 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., tThen 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 breaking 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 for 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 to 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 Ttown-wide study, including a highway capacity analysis at key intersections, towill allow the Town to better understand and provide specific Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 17 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 Studies 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 hamletsTown of Southold Townhamlets 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 CRCounty 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 the Town 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. Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 18 As of June 2018, NYSDOT is conducting a study to implement a series of pedestrian safety improvements along NY State Route 25 in Nassau and Suffolk Counties, including in the Town of 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 the Town of Southold Town’s main artery. The progress of these planned transportation improvements to NY 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 of all road users,and prioritize the safety of all users equally, and do not prioritize the speed and mobility of one travel mode above another the way that traditional traffic level of service and delay studies prioritize auto use. 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 to implemented and easy- to- maintain solutions the Town can pursue under a Complete Streets policy. c. Sidewalk Gaps: If there are 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. Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 19 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 thatwhich could potentially decrease vehicular traffic. Another added benefit is that with 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 the Town of 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: Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 20 Both the Cross Sound and North Ferries generate a certain amount of traffic that is passesing through to and from other places outside the Town, which adds to the peak seasonal traffic congestion both 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 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 21 UTILITY INFRASTRUCTURE INTRODUCTION The purpose of the infrastructure portion of this the Transportation and Infrastructure chapter is to provide an understanding of the Town of Southold Town’s utility infrastructure assets and challenges, and develop Ttown-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. INVENTORY AND ASSESSMENT OF EXISTING CONDITIONSUTILITY INFRASTRUCTURE STORMWATER The majorityMost 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 the Town of 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 the Town of 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 22 WATER (Suffolk County Water Authority ([SCWA]) & Fishers Island Waterworks Co.) The Town hasre are approximately 208 miles of water main lines in the Town, as shown in Figure 4-11. Information provided by the SCWA4 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 Theirits 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 NY State Route 25 and County Route 48,; however, natural gas is not widely available to many residents. Because of security concerns, tOtherhe infrastructure 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, which 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. 4 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 23 There are a total of 16 wireless facilities in the Town of Southold Town, located in the hamlets of Cutchogue, East Marion, Fishers Island, Mattituck/Laurel, Orient, Peconic, and Southold. Wireless service is available in most of the Town of the Southold, 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. Infrastructure gGoals 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,And while natural gas mains follow portions of NY 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. 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. STORMWATER The Town strictly regulates stormwater runoff, and all new development is required to contain their its stormwater runoff on-site with appropriate infrastructure. As development in the Town increases, there will be an expected increase to 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 the Chapter 6, “Natural Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 24 Resources & Environment,” chapter of this plan, 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. 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, they 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 Transportation & Infrastructure Southold Town Comprehensive Plan Update 25 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.