Bill Coxe
Transportation Planner
bcoxe@huntersville.org

The Town of Huntersville's approach to transportation emphasizes a multi-modal and traffic dispersion philosophy, emphasizing the connectivity of streets so that travelers may have multiple routes to destinations. This disperses traffic over a network of smaller sized streets rather than forcing all traffic onto a few major roadways as vehicles and move throughout the community. In addition, connectivity of streets offers routes to pedestrians and bicycles, encouraging these travel modes. This network of streets is also essential to the ability to provide transit service throughout the community.

The Town recognizes that longer distance moderate speed travel is an essential component of the movement within any community. Thus the thoroughfare system agreed upon through the Mecklenburg-Union Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) occupies an important niche within that philosophy. Although current financial resources may not allow public completion of the entire system in a near-term future, the Town is committed to full implementation of the entire system as the community matures. Without such a commitment, roadways that do connect would experience excessive traffic volumes to the detriment of the community as a whole. It is crucial that these thoroughfares fully integrate all travel modes (especially pedestrians and bicyclists) and are tailored to the land uses through which they pass.

Most importantly, it should be recognized that the integration of land use and transportation is essential to any successful attempt to accommodate travel needs in a community. Linking people more closely with their destinations and acknowledging that 80 % of the daily travel demand is not due to the work trip begins to address this issue.