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Comprehensive Plan Transportation Element EXISTING CONDITIONS For traffic circulation purposes, existing conditions relate not only to roadway system characteristics, but to the county's land use pattern and population/demographic profile, as well. While these are discussed in detail in the Future Land Use Element and the Introductory Element, respectively, they also must be discussed in this element. Overall, the county's land use and demographic characteristics relate to the various components of the transportation system. With respect to those components, this section identifies the existing conditions of the county's traffic circulation system, the bicycle/pedestrian system, the ports/aviation system, and the transit system. Traffic Circulation System The traffic circulation system is the most important part of the county's transportation system. Not only does the traffic circulation system accommodate the vast majority of trips within the county; it also provides access to land uses within the area. According to the 2000 Census, the average commute time for residents of the county was 21.85 minutes. The travel mode of choice in the county is the automobile. As shown in Table 4.5, 80% of commute trips consist of single occupancy vehicles. Almost half, 45.9%, of all commutes fall between 10 and 19 minutes. When compared to average journey to work times across the state of Florida, commute times in Indian River County are shorter than most other areas in the state. Inventory and Level-of-Service Figure 4.1.1 shows the current roadway network laneage, while Table 4.7.1 contains a comprehensive listing of all roadway facilities in the county, along with each roadway's laneage, ownership, functional classification, adopted level-of-service and actual level-of-service. For planning purposes, a roadway's capacity and level-of-service (LOS) are generally based on the number of through lanes. While Level of Service (LOS) is a qualitative measure, describing motorists' perceptions of operating conditions within a traffic stream, capacity, on the other hand, is a quantitative measure of the ultimate number of motor vehicles which can travel over a particular roadway segment during a particular time period (either hourly or daily). These conditions are generally described in terms such as speed and travel time, freedom to maneuver, interruptions to traffic flow, comfort and convenience, and safety. As shown on Table 4.7.1, no roadway in unincorporated Indian River County currently exceeds its adopted level-of-service. Community Development Department Indian River County 8 APPENDIX A—Transportation Amendments