1. 6TH AVE PARKWAY CASE
STUDY FHWA
“VISUAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT
GUIDELINES ”
MARISSA FINNEY AND TIM TETHEROW
2. INTRODUCTION TO
“GUIDELINES FOR THE VIA OF HIGHWAY
PROJECTS” 2015
Highway Agencies can improve the visual aesthetics of projects by:
1. Characterizing visual resources
2. Assessing visual impacts
3. Establishing mitigation measures
4. Enhancing the visual experience
3. VIA GUIDELINES HISTORY
• 1981- FHWA guidelines “VIA for Highway Projects”
• VIA process documented in “NCHRP Report 741: Evaluation of Methodologies
for the VIA”
• 2015 - “Guidelines for the Visual Impact Assessment of Highway Projects” was
published
5. REGULATORY CONTEXT
Consideration of aesthetics is included the NEPA and FHWA regulations
…. agencies will “assure all Americans aesthetically and
culturally pleasing surroundings for major Federal Actions.”
• analysis aesthetic effects
• used for planning and decision-making
7. ESTABLISHMENT PHASE:
TECHNICAL REPORT VIA METHODOLOGY
The establishment phases
describes:
• Scope of VIA
• Regulatory Laws
• VIA Methodology
• Project’s Visual Character
• Area of Visual Effect (AVE)
• Landscape Units
9. PROJECT’S VISUAL CHARACTER
Determines the visual attributes of the project’s features ;
which could potentially impact the visual quality.
Proposed Highways
Proposed Major Structures
Proposed Common Improvements
Next Page: 6th Ave Parkway Extension Project’s Visual Character
10.
11. AREA OF VISUAL EFFECT AND LANDSCAPE
UNIT
AVE: Determines the physical constraints of the
environment and the physiological limits of human sight.
Landscape Unit: The geographic unit on which
impacts on visual character, viewers, and visual quality.
Next Page: 6th Ave Parkway Extension AVE and Landscape Unit
12.
13. VISUAL RESOURCES INVENTORY PHASE:
Define the existing visual resources of the:
Affected Environment + Affected Population =
Visual Quality - The interactive experience between
viewers and their environment.
14. VISUAL CHARACTER OF THE AVE:
Natural Environment
• Land
• Water
• Vegetation
• Animal life
• Atmospheric
Cultural Environment
• Buildings
• Infrastructure
• Artifacts and art
Project Environment
• Geometrics
• Grade
• Constructed elements
• Vegetative Cover
• Ancillary Visual Elements
Next Pages: Regional and 6th Ave Parkway Extension Visual Character
15.
16.
17. VIEWERS: VISUAL PREFERENCE
Views of the Road Neighbors
Types of Neighbor Viewers:
• Residential
• Recreational
• Institutional
• Civic
Views from the Road Travelers
Types of Traveling Viewers:
• Commuting
• Touring
• Shipping
• Pedestrian
• Bicycling
• Motoring
• Retail
• Commercial
• Industrial
• Agricultural
Next Pages: Viewer Visibility and Views of the Landscape Character
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20.
21.
22. VISUAL QUALITY
THREE TYPES OF VISUAL PERCEPTION:
When viewing the components of a scene’s natural environment, viewers evaluate the natural harmony of the
existing scene, determining if the composition is harmonious or inharmonious.
When viewing the components of the cultural environment, viewers evaluate the scene’s cultural order,
determining if the composition is orderly or disorderly.
When viewing the project environment, viewers evaluate the coherence of the project components, determining if
the project’s composition is coherent or incoherent.
23. ESTABLISH VIEWER PREFERENCES
FOR VISUAL QUALITY
Professional Observation
Approach
• Projects with average complexity
• Minimum controversy
• VIA Level: Abbreviated and some
Standard
Public Involvement
• More complexity
• Controversy projects
• Public engagement in defining visual
preferences
24. ANALYSIS PHASE:
EVALUATE THE IMPACT CHANGES TO THE ENVIRONMENT AND THE
VIEWERS
Visual Compatibility of the Project’s Visual Character with the
Visual Character of the Environment
+
Viewer Sensitivity
=
Degree of the impact to visual quality.
25. VISUAL CHARACTER COMPATIBILITY
Defined as the ability of the environment to
absorb the proposed action’s visual character.
Impacts of the proposed action’s scale, form, and materials
to the visual character
is considered to be compatible or incompatible.
(not contrasting or contrasting)
Next Page: Project’s Visual Impact to the Visual Character
26.
27. VIEWER SENSITIVITY
Defined by the ability of viewers to see
and care about a proposed action’s
impacts on natural harmony, cultural
order, and project coherence.
Impacts of the proposed action
to viewer exposure and awareness
is considered to be sensitive or insensitive.
Viewer Exposure Attributes:
• Proximity
• Extent
• Duration
Viewer Awareness Attributes:
• Attention
• Focus
• Protection
Next Page: Viewer Views of the Project’s Visual Impact
28.
29. IMPACT TO VISUAL QUALITY
Viewer Sensitivity and Visual Compatibility
determines the degree of impacts to the visual quality.
Adverse, Neutral, Benefit, No Visual Impact
Next Page: Visual Quality Matrix
30.
31. MITIGATION PHASE:
Recommendation on how to:
• Avoid, minimize, and compensate for adverse
impacts
• Identify opportunities for visual quality
enhancement
Purpose of the VIA Guidelines:
Public opinion and visual importance of our highways is key to the visual impacts assessment process.
It has been the “continuing responsibility of the Federal Government to use all practicable means, consistent with other essential considerations of national policy to improve and coordinate Federal plans, functions, programs, and resources to the end that the Nation may… assure for all Americans safe, healthful, productive, and aesthetically and culturally pleasing surrounds.
In 2013, Develop a more scientifically rigorous, administratively practical, and universally accepted VIA process documented in NCHRP Report 741: Evaluation of Methodologies for the VIA
Consideration of aesthetics is included in both NEPA and FHWA regulations. NEPA of 1969, 42 U.S. Code 4321 et. seq., Section 101(b) declares that agencies will assure all Americans “aesthetically and culturally pleasing surroundings” for major Federal Actions; and 49 U.S. Code 4331, Section 102 requires agencies to use environmental design arts in planning and decision-making. The FHWA Advisory T6640.8A requires an analysis of aesthetic effects, particularly for facilities located in visually sensitive urban or rural settings.
NEPA: National Environmental Policy Act
Other Federal Laws: Federal-aid Highway Act (FHWA), National Scenic Byways Program, National Scenic Areas, Wild and Scenic Rivers Act, National Trails System Act, National Monuments, National Historic Preservation Act, Section 4(f) and 6(f)
State and Local Laws: Overarching State Environmental Laws; Local Government Plans, Policies, and Ordinances; Scenic Routes; Coastal and Shoreline Acts; Scenic Rivers; State Resource Conservation and Protection Plans; State Public Land Management Plans
Interagency Coordination: Federal, Tribal, State, and Local
affected environment = visual resources affected population = viewers
Based on the scientific concept called transactional perception. Transactional perception is the result of an interaction between the viewer and environmental, and can be described as a relationship between the viewer and the environment. What viewers value in their relationship with their environment and What they would think of the changes the proposed action would create to that relationship.
Establishment – Define the AVE / study area of the VIA
Inventory – Examine visual quality
Analysis – Evaluate impacts on visual quality
Mitigation – Define the mitigation and enhancement efforts
Determine the AVE by considering the Landscape Constraints (Landform and Land Cover) and the physiological limits of human sight
Visual Quality (what people like or dislike seeing) - a relationship between viewers and their environment
Identify the components of the affected environment + the composition of the affected population = the relationship between them
Assess impacts of the proposed action may cause to the visual resource + viewers separately = describe the degree of impact
or compatibility of impacts + sensitivity to impact = degree of impact to the visual quality (beneficial, adverse, or neutral)
VIA Methodology: Describe the VIA processes; includes the establishment, inventory, analysis, and mitigation phase.
The establishment phases describes:
Scope of VIA Scope: layout, key elements of the VIA process, the level of the VIA, and the criteria of the VIA determining level
Regulatory Context: Identify federal, state, and local laws
VIA Methodology: Describe the VIA processes
Project’s Visual Character: General character of the proposed project’s visual features
Area of Visual Effect (AVE): Identify the area of project visibility
Landscape Units: Establish and describe the life zones
Determine level of via
The propose action must have a noticeable visible changes to the visual resources, viewers, or visual quality in order for a VIA to have purpose
VIA Scoping Questionnaire questions the environmental compatibility and the viewer sensitivity.
Determines the visual attributes of the project’s features by the scale, form, and material; which could potential impact the visual quality.
Proposed Highway – number of lanes, widths and lengths, medians, shoulders, ditches, clear zones, geometrics
Proposed Major Structures – bridges, retaining walls, noise walls
Proposed Common Features – signs and sign supports, crash barriers, lighting, and traffic control devices
Landscape units are defined by viewsheds, and landscape types.
AVE: A GIS visual analysis map can determine the static viewsheds (neighbors of the road) and dynamic viewsheds (travelers on the road).
Define the existing conditions of the:
Affected Environment – The existing visual character of the AVE is determined by its visual resource. The visual resource and the environment are divided into three categories: natural, cultural, and project.
Affected Population – Determining “Viewers of the Road” and “Viewers from the Road”
Visual Quality is the result of the interactive experience between viewers and their environment. Visual Quality is also the experience of having pleasing visual perceptions. Determine what people like and dislike about the visual character of the AVE.
What is Visual Quality?
An aesthetic issue.
Determine what people like and dislike about the visual character of the AVE.
The result of the interactive experience between viewers and their environment.
The experience of having pleasing visual perceptions.
Dividing the affected environment into three categories of environments determines their visual character within the AVE. Below identifies the visual attributes of resources associated to the type of environment:
Natural Environment – the conditions of the land, water, vegetation, animal life, and atmospheric
Cultural Environment – the interact of people with buildings, infrastructure, structures, artifacts, and art
Project Environment – the existing condition of the highway geometrics, grade, constructed elements, vegetative cover, and ancillary visual elements
What the viewers visual preferences are?
Three Types of Visual Perception correspond to each of the three types of visual resources. (natural, cultural, and project environment)
Evaluate the impacts changes to the environment (measured by the compatibility of the impacts) and the viewers (measured by sensitivity to the impact).
The compatibility of the impact + the sensitivity of the impact = the degree of the impact to visual quality.
Visual Character Compatibility
Viewer Sensitivity
Impacts to Visual Quality
visual character = natural, cultural, and project environment
Viewer Exposure Attributes: (Greater the exposure, the more viewers will be concerned about visual impacts)
Proximity – how far away
Further Away Less Exposure
Closer the Viewer More Exposure
Extent – number of people (depends on screening)
Fewer Viewers Less Exposure (City Area)
More Viewers Less Exposure (City Area)
More Viewers More Exposure (Rural Area)
Fewer Viewers More Exposure (Rural Area)
Duration – how long
More Narrow View and Fast Speed Shorter the Duration and Less Viewer Exposure (Viewer from the Road)
Wider the View and More Lingers Longer the Duration and More Viewer Exposure (Viewer of the Road)
Viewer Awareness Attributes:
Attention – correlates with routine
More Routine the Scene to Viewer Less Sensitive
More Unique the Scene to Viewer More Sensitive
Focus – apprehending details
No Specific Visual Element or No Focal Point Less Sensitive
Greater Focus on Visual Element More Sensitive
Protection – restriction that authorities and the community place on changes to particular view or object being viewed
Recreational Values of a Park
Historic Value of a Building
Ecological Value of a Wildlife Refuge
Defined as either a no visual impact / not visible, screened, beneficial, adverse, or neutral change to visual quality.
Impacts to Visual Resources = Impacts to Visual Compatibility = Natural Harmony, Cultural Order, Project Coherence
Benefit Visual Quality by enhancing visual resources or creating better views of those resources and improving the experience of visual quality by viewers.
Mitigation and Enhancement measures to address if adverse:
Identifying specific environments and visual resources affected by the proposed action (natural, cultural, and project)
Identify specific viewers and views affected by the proposed action (neighbors and travelers)
Identify Adverse Impacts of the…
affected environments and visual resources
viewers and views
…for the Proposed Action
