What are access roads?
Access roads are public roads that provide access to a particular area, such as a military establishment, source of raw materials, or a through highway. They are also known as incidental roads that serve state parks, national and state forests, and state institutions. These roads are designed to minimize adverse effects on surface waters and are constructed to maintain surface flows. In construction contracts, access roads and associated bridges or culverts are required to minimize adverse effects on surface waters. The developer is responsible for removing snow and ice from all sidewalks within or adjacent to the site, from adjacent bus stops, from all interior streets, and from required Fire Apparatus Access Roads for the purpose of providing safe vehicular and pedestrian access throughout the site.
In the context of timber harvesting, access roads connect silvicultural operations with the farm or public road system. They are designed to minimize soil erosion and sedimentation in streams and waterways. The recommended distances between drainage control structures for access roads depend on the road grade and slope distance in feet.
What are the benefits of having an access road?
The benefits of having an access road include improved movement of through traffic, reduced crashes, fewer vehicle conflicts, increased safety, enhanced accessibility, reduced construction time and costs, improved land management practices, increased long-term employment opportunities, improved access to local markets, health centers, and social-economic facilities, increased traffic volume and frequency, more consumer goods availability, decreased travel time, reduced congestion, enhanced environmental protection, enhanced safety for workers, safeguarding equipment, and cost and time savings.
How are access roads different from regular roads?
Access roads are to reach specific areas of the forest land or the construction site. They are made with a lower standard compared to regular roads. They include gravel and dirt roads with fewer pavements and various facilities and may not be maintained with the same safety features. However, regular roads are developed to meet the standards of safety, maintenance, and traffic capacity. They are provided with pavements, curbs, sidewalks, and other features that enable any of their users to pass more safely and with better accessibility. Regular roads are under stricter regulations and are meant to host a wider range of vehicles and traffic patterns.
In nut-shell, access roads are developed to serve a specific purpose and, therefore, have more restrictions and low standards than regular roads, which are developed to serve the general public and are designed to meet high standards for safety, maintenance, and traffic capacity.