Fitting a transportation solution into its community and environmental contexts is a key fundamental of Context Sensitive Solutions. When considering how to accomplish this respectfully, designers often use the approach of selecting less-than-desirable dimensions for design elements such as lane and shoulder widths, horizontal and vertical curvature, and sight distances. However, even if these features are designed contextually, a project that adds additional travel lanes to roadways or upgrade intersections with turning and auxiliary lanes can still have a significant impact on its surroundings. Such decisions to add capacity are often based on travel projection modeling assumptions, combined with a goal of achieving free flow Levels of Service (LOS) targets. Methods for ensuring that these factors are also context sensitive are discussed in more detail in this article.

Further Reading:

Traffic Projections and Levels of Service Targets