Whilst access is an important part of the road function, there may be some roads where direct access density has become a road safety problem. For these locations, it may be necessary to replace these access points with a single point of access onto a major road.

This will have the effect of decreasing the number of events a driver must respond to while driving along a particular road. It also provides opportunities for controlling the vehicle movements with turning lanes, traffic islands or traffic signals.

The options include:

• construct a service road
• construct an access lane combining driveways for several properties
• connect a number of smaller car parks and provide a joint access
• close minor intersections with local streets which have alternative access to the local neighbourhood road network.

Generally, if the road authority requires that access points (or intersections) be combined for road safety, then the authority bears the cost of doing so. However, sometimes access points are combined as part of land developments (such as building a new commercial centre). In these cases, the land developer is sometimes required to bear the cost.