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VI <br />THOROUGHFAR~ PLANNING PRINCIPLES AND STANDARDS <br /> <br />Thoroughfare Planning Principles <br /> <br />There are a number of theoretical configurations of road systems which <br />could be adopted as the basis for a thoroughfare plan. The Metropolitan <br />Development Guide policies on transportation give strong emphasis to the <br />concept of a "grid" pattern. While the existing road system in Anoka <br />County has very strong radial (diagonal) features at the regional arterial <br />level, the basic pattern of the County system is that of a grid. At the <br />level of development already attained by the County the superimposing of <br />another pattern over the grid would only produce problems similar to those <br />associated with diagonal T.H. 10. <br /> <br />A grid pattern has a number of distinct advantages associated with it: <br /> <br />1. It can be related easily to a functional hierarchy of streets. <br /> <br />The necessary spacing between elements in the grid can be determined <br />by the intensity of development. <br /> <br />3. It does not create odd-shaped land parcels. <br /> <br />4. Intersections generally are four-legged and at right angles. <br /> <br />Traffic is dispersed over a series of relatively low capacity arterials <br />rather than concentrated on expensive, hard to manage, very high <br />capacity arterials. <br /> <br />Four basic arterial planning principles associated with a grid pattern <br />were utilized in developing the Anoka County arterial system. These <br />are: <br /> <br />1. Arterial streets should have the quality of continuity. <br /> <br />The spacing of arterial streets should reflect the density of trip <br />production, with closer spacing in densely developed areas and wider <br />spacing in low density areas. <br /> <br />37 <br /> <br /> <br />