Intersection General Plan Consistency Requirements – City of Calimesa
To ensure consistency with the City of Calimesa’s General Plan and its acceptable Levels of Service (LOS), specific criteria are applied in traffic studies to identify necessary infrastructure improvements. These improvements aim to maintain or restore acceptable traffic operations. It is important to note that while this analysis supports General Plan consistency, CEQA-related impacts are determined separately, based on Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) thresholds described elsewhere in these guidelines.
Collector and Local Road Signalized Intersection Requirements
For signalized intersections involving two or more collector or local roads, the following standards apply:
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If the intersection currently operates at an acceptable LOS C or better without the project traffic but degrades to LOS D or worse with the addition of project traffic, the study must identify improvements to restore the intersection to LOS C or better.
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If the intersection is already operating at LOS D or worse without project traffic, and the project causes an increase in delay of 5.0 seconds or more, the study must recommend improvements to offset the added delay and maintain acceptable operations.
Highway and Arterial Signalized Intersection Requirements
For intersections involving one or more highway or arterial roads, the standards are:
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If the intersection operates at an acceptable LOS D or better without project traffic but degrades to LOS E or F when project traffic is added, improvements must be identified to maintain LOS D or better.
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If the intersection operates at LOS E or F without project traffic and the project causes an increase in delay of 5.0 seconds or more, improvements should be proposed to offset the delay increase.
Unsignalized Intersection Requirements
For unsignalized intersections, the City applies a slightly different set of criteria to determine whether operational improvements are necessary:
An improvement is required if either of the following is true:
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Condition A: The addition of project-related traffic causes the intersection to degrade from an acceptable LOS C or better to LOS D or worse.
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Condition B: The project adds 5.0 seconds or more of delay to an intersection that is already projected to operate at LOS D or worse without the project and the intersection meets the peak hour traffic signal warrant after adding the project traffic.
If either of these conditions is met, improvements must be proposed that:
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Restore the intersection to LOS C or better for Condition A, or
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Restore the intersection to the pre-project LOS and delay levels for Condition B.
This General Plan consistency framework for the City of Calimesa aims to ensure that traffic operations at both signalized and unsignalized intersections remain within acceptable performance standards after new development projects add traffic. For local and collector roads, stricter criteria are applied to maintain LOS C or better, while for higher volume highways and arterials, the focus is on maintaining LOS D or better. Unsignalized intersections require a combination of delay thresholds and signal warrants to trigger improvements.
The process requires identifying specific mitigation measures when projects negatively impact traffic conditions beyond these thresholds. These measures help maintain smooth and safe traffic flow consistent with the City’s planning goals. This analysis supplements, but does not replace, CEQA impact assessments, which focus on VMT and other environmental criteria.
By adhering to these requirements, traffic studies can provide a consistent and transparent approach to evaluating and mitigating transportation impacts of new development in the City of Calimesa.
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