Laserfiche WebLink
5.12 Traffic and Transportation <br /> This section addresses the potential effects of the Lodi Energy Center (LEC) on traffic and <br /> transportation. Section 5.12.1 describes the affected environment of the local and regional <br /> traffic and transportation routes surrounding the project site. Section 5.12.2 evaluates the <br /> project's environmental consequences on local traffic volumes and patterns.Section 5.12.3 <br /> evaluates potential cumulative effects on traffic and transportation due to other <br /> simultaneous projects. Section 5.12.4 describes mitigation measures for the project. <br /> Section 5.12.5 describes applicable laws, ordinances,regulations, and standards (LORS),and <br /> Section 5.12.6 lists the applicable regulatory agency contacts. Section 5.12.7 discusses traffic <br /> and transportation permits required.Section 5.12.8 lists the references used to prepare this <br /> section. <br /> 5.12.1 Affected Environment <br /> The proposed 4.4-acre LEC project site is located on land owned and incorporated by the <br /> City of Lodi, 6 miles west of the Lodi city center, in San Joaquin County. The power plant site <br /> is on the west side of Interstate 5 (I-5) approximately 1.7 miles south of State Route 12 <br /> (SR 12). On the east side of the site is the City of Lodi s White Slough Water Pollution Control <br /> Facility (WPCF). The WPCF's treatment and holding ponds are located to the north,the <br /> existing Northern California Power Agency (NCPA) Combustion Turbine Project#2 <br /> (STIG plant) is located to the west with a 230-kV PG&E overhead electrical transmission line <br /> aligned further to the west,and the San Joaquin County Mosquito and Vector Control <br /> District facility is to the south. <br /> 5.12.1.1 Existing Regional and Local Transportation Facilities <br /> The surrounding regional and local roadway networks are shown in Figures 5.12-1 and <br /> 5.12-2. Freeway access to the site is provided from the north and south via I-5, and to the <br /> east and west via SR 12. Local access to the project site is mainly provided by Thornton <br /> Road,a north-south arterial to the east of the project site. The LEC employees and <br /> construction workers traveling to the site may affect the roadways described below. <br /> 5.12.1.1.1 Interstate 5 <br /> I-5 is a north-south freeway from California to Washington. I-5 connects to SR 12 north of <br /> the project site and to State Route 4 (SR 4) south of the project site. Access from I-5 to the site <br /> is provided from the south using Thornton Road via West Eight Mile Road,and from the <br /> north using Thornton Road via SR 12. In the immediate vicinity of the proposed project, I-5 <br /> has three lanes in each direction,and two lanes in each direction north of SR 12. According <br /> to traffic counts published by the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) in <br /> 2006,the average daily traffic volume on 1-5 near the SR 12 interchange is 77,000 vehicles per <br /> day. Trucks are approximately 16 percent of all traffic. <br /> 5.12.1.1.2 State SR 4 <br /> SR 4 is an east-west freeway that connects Contra Costa County with San Joaquin County. <br /> SR 4 connects to I-5 to the south of the project site, and to State Route 160 (SR 160) to the <br /> west of the project site. In the vicinity of SR 160,SR 4 has two lanes in each direction. <br /> According to traffic counts published by Caltrans in 2006,the average daily traffic volume <br /> on SR 4 is 38,000 vehicles per day. Trucks are approximately 5 percent of all traffic. <br /> SAC/371322/082380003(LEC_5.12_TRAFFIC_AND_TRANSPORTATION.DOC) 5.12-1 <br />