Wyo. Code R. 045-0003-13
General Agency, Board or Commission Rules
Chapter 13: Access Facilities
Effective Date: 10/24/1978 to 04/05/2005
Rule Type: Superceded Rules & Regulations
Reference Number: 045.0003.13.10241978
transport/general/13_Access_Facilities
Agency TRANSPORT Transportation, Dept. of Program GENERAL
General Agency, Board or Commission Rules
Chapter Name Access Facilities
Chapter No.13
Date Filed 10/24/78
Expr Date
Supr Date
Repeal Date
Document Type RULES
Section 1. Authority. The highway authorities of the Wyoming State Highway Department pursuant to Sections 24-6-101 through 24-6-110, Wyoming Statutes 1977, are "authorized to plan, designate, establish, regulate, vacate, alter, improve, maintain and provide access facilities for public use wherever such authority or authorities are of the opinion that traffic conditions, present or future will justify such special facilities..."
Section 2. Definitions.
(a) Acceleration Lane: An acceleration lane is an extra driving lane which enables vehicles entering the highway to merge with the through traffic, at the average running speed of the through traffic.
(b) Access Driveways: Entrance or exit to private land from the highway.
(c) Car Storage: The necessary space "not on highway right-of-way" provided for vehicles waiting to enter a commercial establishment, such as drive-in theaters, car washes, etc.
(d) Commercial Driveway: A commercial driveway is defined as an entrance to and/or exit from any commercial, business or public establishment adjacent to a state highway.
(e) Crossing at Grade: An intersection where all roadways join or cross at the same level.
(f) Cultural and Institutional Driveways: A cultural or institutional driveway is defined as an entrance to and/or exit from churches, schools, hospitals, and etc. Design requirements are the same as for Commercial Driveways.
(g) Deceleration Lane: An extra driving lane which enables vehicles traveling at high speeds to decelerate to a speed at which the vehicles can turn off the highway safely.
(h) District Engineer: A person employed by the Wyoming Highway Department who has the responsibility for enforcing policies of the State Highway officials and Commission, on all state highways within his district.
(i) Driveway Angle: The angle of 90 degrees or less where the driveway and highway intersect.
(j) Driveway Slope: The slope of the driveway from the roadway to the highway right-of-way.
(k) Driveway Width: The narrowest width of the driveway measured perpendicular with the edge of the driveway.
(l) Frontage Road: A street or road connected to and located on the side of a highway for services to abutting property and adjacent areas and for control of access.
(m) Grantee: The person or persons whose application for an access driveway has been approved.
(n) Island: A defined area between traffic lanes for control of vehicle movements.
(o) Minor Driveway: Minor driveways are not covered by this manual and are left up to the discretion of the District Engineer.
(p) Multi-lane Highway: A highway with two or more lanes for each direction of travel.
(q) Private Residential Driveway: A driveway adjacent to a state highway to provide entrance to and/or exit from a residential dwelling for the exclusive use and benefit of those residing therein.
(r) Right-of-Way: A strip of land acquired for the exclusive use of constructing and maintaining highways and highway appurtenances, such as safety zones, highway signs and highway lighting, and to provide clear lines of sight for vehicles, plus future highway expansion.
(s) Rural Area: Any area not included in a business, industrial or residential zone of moderate or high density, whether or not it is within the boundaries of a municipality.
(t) Sight Distance: The distance that the drivers can see ahead and control the speed of their vehicles so as to avoid striking an unexpected obstacle or vehicle on the roadway.
(u) Urban Area: Any area included in a business, industrial or residential zone of moderate or high density, whether or not it is within the boundaries of a municipality.
Section 3. Limitations Upon Access Use. When access is granted and designated by the highway authorities at specified points along such highway, such means of access to and from the highway, shall be limited to the use designated by the State Highway Department. In the event the State Highway Department grants a private and not a commercial entrance or access to the highway, such entrance or point of access shall not be used for or in connection with the conduct of any roadside business or other commercial enterprise.
Section 4. Criteria Considered in Access Application. Normally no highway shall be constructed without providing for the property rights of residents whose homes or places of business are not located on or abutts the proposed highway. Access to the highway may be denied if certain criteria are not met. Factors to be considered for approaches include sight distance, speed, land use, and safety.
(a) In the exercise of these duties it is the policy of the State Highway Department to allow reasonable access from abutting property to the state highway, with sufficient latitude and flexibility in the interpretation of reasonableness to meet any situation without causing undue hardship to an abutting land-user or hazard to road users. These regulations govern such reasonable access to all highways, roads and streets under the jurisdiction of the State Highway Department except those designated as controlled access facilities to which direct access is denied by law.
(b) It is the intent of these regulations to provide design standards whereby orderly and safe movements of traffic in and out of private properties may be made in ways which will constitute a minimum of interference and hazard to highway traffic, and to control the use of drainage structures and/or other appurtenances necessary to preserve the physical structure of the highway.
Section 5. Highway Construction and Reconstruction Affecting Access. If a highway construction or reconstruction project is undertaken which required the replacement or adjustment of existing access to abutting property, the access facility will be constructed or reconstructed by the Wyoming Highway Department to a design within these regulations to a condition equal to or better than the original structure. All costs of the work will be chargeable to the project.
(a) If a need for access, where none formerly existed, develops subsequent to the initiation of construction or reconstruction work on a highway, the abutting property owner must follow the procedure outlined and the cost of the work will be determined by mutual agreement between the landowner and the State Highway Commission.
Section 6. Frontage Roads. Where sufficient right-of-way is acquired for the purpose of ultimately limiting access by means of frontage roads, permission for access driveways to the highway may be granted with the provision that such driveways will be removed when the frontage road is provided by the Highway Department.
(a) In certain cases, due to subdivision development or heavy strip development, it may be deemed necessary, through a traffic investigation, to require the landowners to construct service roads off highway right-of-way. The cost participation for these service roads to be determined by mutual agreement between the landowners and the Wyoming Highway Commission.
Section 7. Access Permit Applications. Application for an access permit to construct any private driveway or to reconstruct or alter any existing driveway shall be made to the District Engineer having jurisdiction in the area. Applications for access permits will be accepted only from an individual, partnership or corporation or other body recognized by law as owning all or the major interest in the property abutting the highway right-of-way, or proposed highway.
(a) No work shall be undertaken on state highway right-of-way prior to receipt by the applicant of a copy of the permit approved by the appropriate District Engineer. In addition, the State Highway Department may require a bond to guarantee the faithful and satisfactory performance of the work and payment for any damage to state highways and facilities.
(b) The following information is required on the application for access permits:
(1) The location of the property must be identified clearly enough for proposed site to be located in the field.
(2) Complete names and addresses of the property owner or owners must be given on the application.
(3) The planned property use must be indicated as one of the following:
(a) Private Residential Driveway: (See Definitions)
(b) Commercial Driveway: (See Definitions)
(c) Cultural and Institutional Driveways: (See Definitions)
(d) Minor Driveway: (See Definitions)
(4) A sketch showing sufficient dimensions shall be submitted with the application which clearly indicates the character and extent of the work proposed including, location of all existing or proposed building, stands, pumps, retaining walls and other physical features which affect the driveway location. The sketch must show property lines and dimensions and existing access driveways and the proposed access driveway or driveways plus all drainage which affect the driveway location. The sketch must show off-street parking locations which may affect the driveway location.
Section 8. Materials. The grantee shall furnish all materials necessary for the construction of the entrances and appurtenances authorized by the permit. All materials shall be of satisfactory quality and shall be subject to the inspection and approval by the Wyoming Highway Department.
Section 9. Inspection and Maintenance. The Wyoming Highway Department reserves the right to inspect installations at the time of construction and at all times thereafter, and to require such changes, maintenance and repairs as may at any time be considered necessary to provide protection of life and property on or adjacent to the highway. The maintenance of private and commercial access driveways and islands on highway right-of-way will be the responsibility of the Wyoming Highway Department.
Section 10. Changes in Existing Facilities. No access driveways or other improvement constructed on the highway right-of-way shall be relocated or its dimensions altered without a duly approved permit from the Wyoming Highway Department.
Section 11. Indemnification. The grantee shall hold harmless the Wyoming Highway Commission and its duly appointed agents and employees against any action for personal injury or property damage sustained by reason of the exercise of his permit.
Section 12. Limitation. These regulations shall apply on all highways, other than full controlled access highways, under the jurisdiction of the Wyoming Highway Department.
Section 13. Signs. The grantee shall not be permitted to erect any sign, either fixed or moveable, on or extending over any portion of the highway right-of-way, or conduct any business of any nature on the highway right-of-way.
(a) All parts of entrances and exits on highway right-of-way shall be confined within the grantee's property frontage wherever possible. Frontage is that portion of the grantee's property lying between the two most distant possible lines drawn perpendicular from the centerline of the highway to grantee's abutting property.
(b) Locations of access driveways shall be selected to provide maximum safety for highway traffic and for users of the driveway.
(c) At any intersection of a State highway with another highway, road, street or alley, where additional right-of-way has been procured for improved sight distance, no access driveway will be permitted on or across the frontage. At any other intersection, access driveways shall be prohibited for a sufficient distance from the intersection to preserve the normal and safe movement of traffic through it. All parts of any access driveway, including the radii, shall be a minimum of ten (10) feet inside the abutting property frontage, except as provided in Section 14 subsection f. In a rural area any access driveways should be located a minimum of seventy-five (75) feet from the intersecting right-of-way line. At interchanges, access driveways should be located a minimum of seventy-five (75) feet from any ramp termini.
(d) Radii for all access driveways in urban areas shall be not less than two and one half (2 1/2) feet, and in rural areas the radii shall be not less than (10) feet, except as provided in Section 14 subsection f.
(e) Drainage in highway side ditches shall not be altered or impeded when drainage structures are required. Size of opening and other design features shall be as directed by the Engineer having jurisdiction in the area, and the cost shall be borne by the grantee.
(f) The Highway Department may authorize or require certain changes in the design limits herein when such changes are necessary to preserve the normal and safe movement of traffic or to permit reasonable access. In consideration of type, speed and volume of highway and access driveway traffic, larger curb return radii than the minimum herein may be required by the District Engineer. When physical factors made it impractical to obtain reasonable access within these requirements, appropriate variations may be authorized by the District Engineer; provided that in all cases, curb return radii shall be confined to the grantee's property frontage wherever possible, and shall not be less than two and one half (2 1/2) feet.
(g) The driveway slope or grade shall be so constructed as to conform to the slope of the roadway shoulder, from the edge of the paved surface to the shoulder line and then shall be sloped downward. Variations of the typical plans may be submitted for approval.
(h) Landowners of adjacent property may be asked or may want to construct a joint driveway to service both properties. All parties involved must sign the 'Application for Permit to Construct Access Driveways.' A written mutual agreement, signed by all parties involved, must accompany the application form. All requirements of this manual shall be met with the exception that the side clearance restriction (Section 14 subsection a) shall not apply. In the event that either landowner violates any of the requirements of this manual, the joint driveway shall be removed by the landowners or the Wyoming Highway Department.
(i) Two driveways entering on a particular highway from a single commercial establishment or residence may be permitted if all other requirements of this manual are met and if the minimum distance between the two driveways in both rural and urban areas is 25 feet. Three or more driveways entering a single commercial establishment from a particular street shall not be permitted.
(j) Control of access means that the authority to control access is exercised to give preference to through traffic to a degree that in addition to access connections with selected public roads, there may be some crossing at grade and some private driveway connections. Commercial areas, to best serve interstate highway traffic, may be developed along the cross roads adjacent to or near interchanges but beyond the limits of access control. Where frontage roads are not constructed, access to the interstate highway will not be permitted under any circumstances, except at interchanges.
(a) The grantee shall do all work and pay all costs in connection with the construction of access driveways and their appurtenances on the highway right-of-way, including the cost of replacing all sections of curb, if any, damaged during construction.
(b) The width shall not exceed twenty-four (24) feet, except in special cases, measured at right angles to the centerline of the driveway, except as increased by permissible radii.
(c) The angle of the access driveway from the highway pavement shall be sixty (60) to ninety (90) degrees.
(a) The grantee shall do all work and pay all costs in connection with the construction of access driveways and their appurtenances on the right-of-way.
(b) The width of access driveways shall not exceed forty (40) feet, except in special cases, measured at right angles to the centerline of the driveway, except as increased by permissible radii or as provided in Section 14 subsection f.
(c) The angle of access driveways from the pavement shall be sixty (60) to ninety (90) degrees, except that one-way directional roads shall be thirty (30) to ninety (90) degrees.
(d) All parts of the highway right-of-way between the curb or shoulder line and the right-of-way line along the grantee's property frontage, except the areas contained in the access driveways, shall be known as a safety zone. Safety zones between drives shall not be less than twenty-five (25) feet in width except as provided in Section 14 subsection f. Curbs or posts shall be installed by the grantee as may be necessary to prohibit vehicle parking and access in safety zones. If curbs are used, they shall be concrete or masonry barrier type curbs, not less than six (6) inches in height. If posts are used, they shall be round, eight (8) inches in diameter and six (6) feet in length, with two and one half (2 1/2) feet extending above the ground and spaced so a vehicle cannot pass between. The posts will be reflectorized by a reflectorized strip, two (2) inches by six (6) inches in size, mounted six (6) inches from the top of the post.
Section 7. Vehicle Service Fixtures. The distance from the right-of-way line to the near edge of service pumps, vendor stands, tanks or private water hydrants should be a minimum of fifteen (15) feet to permit free movement of large vehicles and, to insure that they be entirely off highway right-of-way while being serviced.
Section 8. Heavy Traffic Volume Access Driveways. Drive-in theaters, car washes and other businesses of this nature must make allowances for car storage on the premises to prevent stacking of vehicles on the roadway, which shall not be permitted. It is recommended that a minimum capacity of 30 vehicles for a theater and 10 to 20 vehicles for a car wash be provided. Whenever possible, access drives should be located at least 50 feet from any street corner. Where feasible acceleration and deceleration lanes should be used, provided that an agreement in writing with the parties involved is obtained to the effect that no other access driveways will enter the highway within the limits of the lanes. Cuts should not be made in the median on multi-lane highways to permit left turn movement. It is recommended that the entrances and exists be clearly indicated by signs installed off the highway right-of-way, and that some sort of overhead lighting be installed at the entrances and exists to assist in the safe movement of traffic.
Section 9. Advertising Sign Maintenance. Advertising signs or devices located adjacent to the right-of-way fence may not be serviced from within the right-of-way.
Section 10. Locked Gates. Locked gates located in right-of-way fences on limited or controlled access highways may not be utilized without prior approval of the Superintendent.