Title: PURPOSE, ANALYSIS AND APPLICATION, ORIGIN AND DESTINATION SURVEY, MILWAUKEE METROPOLITAN AREA
Abstract: COSTLY TRAFFIC DELAYS, CONGESTION, AND HAZARDS EXIST IN MILWAUKEE AS IN OTHER URBAN AREAS. THE INSTALLATION OF TRAFFIC SIGNALS HAS PARALLELED MOTOR VEHICLE REGISTRATION. FEW OF THESE INSTALLATIONS HELP TRAFFIC FLOW BUT RATHER RETARD IT IN THE INTEREST OF SAFETY. NEW ROUTES ARE BEING CONSTRUCTED WITH CENTER PARKWAYS, STREETS ARE BEING WIDENED, ETC., BUT THE ACCIDENT RATE DOES NOT DECLINE AND THERE IS STILL SERIOUS CONGESTION. SPEEDS ON EXISTING ARTERIAL STREETS AND EXPRESSWAYS WERE STUDIED. DOWNTOWN SPEEDS AVERAGED 10 MPH IN A ZONE WITH A 25 MPH SPEED LIMIT WHILE EXPRESSWAY SPEEDS AVERAGED 31.5 MPH IN A 30 MPH ZONE. A CHECK ON SPECIFIC SECTIONS OF DOWNTOWN ARTERIAL STREETS AND A SECTION OF EXPRESSWAY CARRYING SIMILAR TRAFFIC BUT WITH NO CROSS TRAFFIC, SHOWED THE EXPRESSWAY TO HAVE THE VERY SIGNIFICANT ADVANTAGES OF A 2 1/2 TO 1 SPEED RATIO, A 1 TO 20 ACCIDENT RATIO, AND A 1 TO 30 INJURY RATIO. THE COST OF OPERATION OF MOTOR VEHICLES IN TRAFFIC WAS STUDIED. A CHECK DISCLOSED THAT THE AVERAGE MILWAUKEE DRIVER MAKES APPROXIMATELY FOUR STOPS AND LOSES 56 SEC. IN EACH MILE OF DOWNTOWN ARTERY TRAVEL. AT 25 MPH A VEHICLE MAKING NO STOPS GETS 6 MI PER GAL MORE MILEAGE THAN ONE MAKING FOUR STOPS. THE MILWAUKEE ORIGIN AND DESTINATION SURVEY WAS UNDERTAKEN TO DETERMINE IF EXPRESSWAYS WOULD BE ECONOMICALLY JUSTIFIABLE BY THE VOLUMES OF TRAFFIC EXPECTED. FOR COMPUTING COMPARATIVE DATA BETWEEN EXPRESSWAYS AND IMPROVED EXISTING STREETS A SPEED RATIO OF 2 TO 1 (35 TO 17.5 MPH) WAS CHOSEN AND A MINIMUM VOLUME TO JUSTIFY EXPRESSWAY CONSTRUCTION WAS ESTABLISHED AS 30,000 VEHICLES PER DAY. SEVERAL ALTERNATE NORTH-SOUTH ROUTES WERE STUDIED IN DETAIL AND THREE WERE DETERMINED TO BE ADEQUATE FOR THE NEEDS OF TRAFFIC. OTHER CONSIDERATIONS SUCH AS RIGHT OF WAY COST, THE EXISTENCE OF AN ADEQUATE BRIDGE ETC. LED TO THE SELECTION OF ONE ROUTE (OVER SIXTEENTH ST.) FOR THE PRINCIPAL NORTH-SOUTH ARTERY. THE EAST-WEST ROUTE WAS CHOSEN (OVER HIGHLAND AVE.) IN THE SAME MANNER. A BELT ROUTE AROUND THE DOWNTOWN BUSINESS AREA AND RADIATING FEEDERS TO INTERREGIONAL HIGHWAYS ETC. ARE ALSO RECOMMENDED. /AUTHOR/
Publication Year: 1947
Publication Date: 1947-01-01
Language: en
Type: article
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