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    <title>Research in Progress (RIP)</title>
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    <atom:link href="https://rip.trb.org/Record/RSS?s=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" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
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    <copyright>Copyright © 2026. National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.</copyright>
    <docs>http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss</docs>
    <managingEditor>tris-trb@nas.edu (Bill McLeod)</managingEditor>
    <webMaster>tris-trb@nas.edu (Bill McLeod)</webMaster>
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      <title>Research in Progress (RIP)</title>
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      <link>https://rip.trb.org/</link>
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    <item>
      <title>Modernizing NDOT's Pavement Marking Program for Retroreflectivity Compliance and Cost-Effective Restriping </title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2689409</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The evaluation of pavement marking materials primarily relies on their retroreflectivity, which is the measure of how effectively markings reflect vehicle headlight illumination back toward the driver. Deciding when pavement markings need to be restriped is not straightforward because their visibility depends on retroreflectivity. Nebraska Department of Transportation (NDOT) currently follows a pavement marking policy that is last updated over twenty years ago. The practice is based on fixed restriping frequencies (e.g., annually) determined by corridor type and traffic volume. The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) requires all agencies to implement a pavement marking retroreflectivity maintenance method by September 6, 2026, and specifies minimum maintained retroreflectivity values of 50 mcd/m²/lx for roadways with posted speeds ≥ 35 mph and 100 mcd/m²/lx for speeds ≥ 70 mph. NDOT does not yet maintain a comprehensive or statewide pavement marking retroreflectivity dataset. Without historical measurements or geographically representative data, it cannot characterize how different marking materials deteriorate across Nebraska’s diverse traffic and climate conditions. This lack of data limits NDOT’s ability to transition from a frequency-based to a performance-based maintenance strategy that meets FHWA requirements, manages costs, and improves operational efficiency. The overall goal of this research project is to provide NDOT with a documented, MUTCD-compliant, and data-driven method for maintaining pavement marking retroreflectivity that ensures safety, regulatory compliance, and cost-effective use of maintenance resources. To achieve this goal, the project will pursue the following specific objectives: develop a Nebraska-specific hybrid maintenance method, develop a statistically sound statewide data-collection plan, develop and calibrate degradation models, and quantify expected life-cycle benefits.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 02 Jun 2026 12:26:55 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2689409</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>KYTC Striping Policy Update — Review of Current Practice and Performance</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2593931</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Several issues negatively impact the performance of pavement striping, including premature fading, poor visibility under adverse weather conditions, limited durability, and product availability. All of these issues can potentially degrade roadway safety and traffic operations. This study will review Kentucky Transportation Cabinet's (KYTC's) current striping policies as well as specifications and practices adopted by other state DOTs to determine how the Cabinet can update its approach to striping. The review will focus on materials used, rates/film thicknesses of various materials, performance evaluation, and construction quality control processes.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Thu, 28 Aug 2025 11:32:30 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2593931</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Statewide Pavement Marking Condition Assessment Program</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2485381</link>
      <description><![CDATA[New driver-assist vehicle technologies—such as lane departure warnings, lane-centering systems, and lane-keep-assist systems—rely on pavement striping to function safely and effectively. Therefore, if these systems cannot detect pavement markings due to rain, snow, dust, or roadway damage, they may not operate correctly. Using retroreflective raised pavement markers (RRPM) is one solution to help maintain the visibility of pavement striping under these conditions, but there are tradeoffs. For instance, vehicle technology companies report that RRPMs are effective in helping their systems work, yet deployment is inconsistent throughout many states due to the high expense of installation and maintenance. 
This study would help Arizona Department of Transportation's (ADOT’s) Traffic Engineering Group determine appropriate design and installation guidelines for roadway striping to facilitate the use of new driver-assist vehicle technologies and develop a long-term striping maintenance plan that supports both legacy users and new technology, fine-tune striping assessment programs to optimize where and when new roadway striping should be implemented, and determine how best to inventory the striping’s current condition in order to prioritize striping maintenance activities. This research would then help provide the basis for a statewide system to make sure all Arizona roadways have pavement markings that support and perform at the levels needed for both human drivers and driver-assist vehicle technologies.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Fri, 03 Jan 2025 16:27:13 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2485381</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Investigation of Automated Striping Systems
</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2444754</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) maintains over 19,000 centerline miles of pavement. Most Districts utilize in-house forces to stripe and restripe roadways on an annual basis. The current striping process requires four people and two trucks. One crew goes out and physically measures and marks the road to indicate where the pavement markings need to be placed. Another truck follows and stripes the pavement based on the markings left by the first crew. This process is tedious, time consuming, and has the potential for inaccuracies as the entire marking process is based on human eyesight. It also places ODOT crews in harm's way as this process is often done in active traffic. With advances in technology, systems are now available that utilize the Global Positioning System (GPS) to map, mark and stripe roadways. These systems are designed to identify and store both edge and centerline markings and claim to have an accuracy of +/- one inch. Research is needed to enhance ODOT's striping process through process improvements and/or the incorporation of technology to ensure accuracy, quality, and safety.  The goal of this research is to increase the quality, timeliness, cost effectiveness, and safety of the pavement striping process.

The objectives of the team should include:
-	Identify the current state of practice for pavement striping giving consideration to striping materials, standards, procedures, costs, and accuracy.
-	Evaluate the potential for incorporating new processes and/or new technologies for pavement striping.
-	Verify recommendations with field testing, if appropriate and authorized.
-	Provide recommendations for process improvements and training to ODOT crews as appropriate. 
                ]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 22 Oct 2024 15:33:46 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2444754</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Improve Safety and Decrease Vehicle Fatalities by Improving Pavement Markings</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2437692</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The Texas Department of Transportation's (TxDOT) "End the Streak" goal is to end all fatalities on Texas roads by 2050 as there has not been a day without a death on Texas roadways since November 7, 2000. New strategies must be implemented, such as increasing the efficacy of pavement striping and retroreflective pavement markers in several TxDOT districts and monitoring the crash statistics before and after pavement marking and marker improvements over time. The research team will target pavement marking retroreflectivity and contrast and will include the development and implementation of an experimental study design to assess their safety and economic effectiveness.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Thu, 03 Oct 2024 10:51:22 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2437692</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Barrier Striping for the Reduction of Accidents</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2255816</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The Traffic Safety Division (TRF) of Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) drafted a special specification (SS) for the vertical application of a retroreflective solid stripe on concrete barriers, approximately six (6) inches below the barrier's top. During the phase of new product approval, this SS describes an application similar to three (3) locations already installed on Texas roadways in previous years. Barrier striping increases motorist awareness of the roadway's edge and the barrier itself, particularly in low-visibility conditions (i.e., heavy rain and snow). These existing implementation sites have not been formally evaluated. Furthermore, the short-term effectiveness of the treatments has not been investigated; therefore, there is a need for long-term and short-term safety effectiveness evaluation of these treatments. The research teams will collect before-and-after collision data from Crash Record Information System (CRIS) and near-collision data from connected vehicle data vendor (e.g., Wejo) to evaluate the effectiveness of vertical application of a retroreflective solid stripe on concrete barriers. Furthermore, the research teams will install these treatments at six (6) high crash locations with different barrier types including, but not limited to concrete barriers and metal beam guard fences to evaluate their short-term effectiveness using non-traditional safety evaluation approaches. The research teams will utilize the findings to update the drafted SS for the future use across the state and beyond.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 27 Sep 2023 13:43:08 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2255816</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Effectiveness of Automated Pavement Restriping Systems - Phase 2</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2255814</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) is responsible for maintaining the pavement markings on its 10,291-mile roadway network. The centerline markings, lane markings, and edge line markings are applied annually using waterborne paint from six restriping trucks, one for each KDOT district. These vehicles are durable pieces of equipment and are expected to last 20+ years; currently these vehicles are each less than 5 years old. While having newer vehicles is generally a good thing, as new technologies become standard equipment on newer models it can be a challenge to justify upgrading existing vehicles until the next replacement cycle, meaning new innovations might not be implemented until the next equipment replacement cycle. One paint crew (District 5) has been selected to receive two upgraded vehicles (layout truck and striping truck) in 2023 to increase the productivity of the pavement restriping process. Specifically, these upgraded vehicles are expected to a) speed up the marking layout process, and b) eliminate the need for one of the crew members in the striping truck.
After the finding of the phase one report against adoption of the automated pavement restriping system on a purely economic basis, the second phase of this project is being proposed to run during CY 2023. The automated painting system has been delivered to District 5’s paint crew since the conclusion of phase one, so this phase will aim to evaluate that system to determine the accuracy and effectiveness of the work produced by it. This evaluation would use field data collection to determine if the system results in a similar result as if an experienced KDOT field employee were doing the restriping. Together, this will serve to improve KDOT’s understanding of automated paint restriping systems to determine if wider implementation is warranted systemwide and create a more accurate cost savings recommendation.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 27 Sep 2023 12:37:42 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2255814</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Evaluation of NJDOT Hardened Traffic Paint Markings and Stripes Performance</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2124968</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Pavement markings are the primary means for an agency to provide longitudinal guidance to drivers. Effective pavement markings can improve safety, improve driver comfort, and increase functionality/reliability of automated driving systems or Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS). To be effective, markings must be visible during all driving conditions, and be observable during both day and night. Markings are typically characterized by their retroreflectivity, which is a surrogate measure for how visible the marking is at night. However, retroreflectivity does not consider other factors that will impact the actual visibility of the marking, such as the color or retroreflectivity of the pavement that the marking is applied to, the color or width of the marking, or the viewing conditions (i.e., observation vehicle, observer characteristics, weather conditions). Retroreflectivity is also a metric for nighttime visibility, which may not relate to the marking visibility during the day. The combined impact of the factors, such as: adverse weather conditions, drying time, inadequate thickness of marking, excess traffic volume, and poor surface coating, contribute to deterioration of the quality of pavement markings. Therefore, it is highly needed to periodically evaluate the performance of pavement markings, since some markings and stripes are not performing satisfactorily, despite only being shortly applied on roadways. This project aims to obtain and analyze relevant technical and performance data of various pavement marking materials, and to determine which product(s) can be used to stripe various roadway surfaces to withstand the NJ weather and traffic conditions. In addition, this project will evaluate: drying time issues, alternative testing protocols, durability issues, cost benefits, temporary markings, and to develop an alternative specification for quick application of paints when supply chain issues arise. This study will provide guidance and recommendations to improve new marking installation specifications and techniques, improve marking maintenance practices, and evaluate the current specifications and requirements for road markings and stripes paint with respect to sensing capabilities of autonomous vehicles for operational purpose.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Mon, 06 Mar 2023 10:41:51 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2124968</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Development of a Machine Learning-Based Model to Determine the Optimum and Safe Restriping Timing of Thermoplastic Pavement Markings in Hot and Humid Climates</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1904966</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The objective of this study is to develop new cost-effective restriping strategies for
thermoplastic pavement markings when applied to pavements in hot and humid climates.
To achieve this objective, the field performance (retroreflectivity and durability) of
thermoplastic pavement markings under hot and humid climate service conditions will be
evaluated. Based on the results, the research team will develop performance prediction
models that could predict the thermoplastic pavement marking service life based on the
roadway conditions. This will assist transportation agencies maintain minimum
retroreflectivity levels in conformance with the proposed Federal Highway Administration
(FHWA) requirements with minimal risk of under restriping or over restriping. Eventually
life cycle cost analysis will be conducted to compare different restriping strategies. The
implementation of this research will significantly improve traffic safety in rainy conditions
encountered in Region 6. In addition, the results of this research are important to ensure
safe and reliable navigation of autonomous vehicles through the roadway, which are
recently emerging in Region 6. The results of this research will be used to implement and
optimize the use and maintenance of thermoplastic pavement markings in South-Central
United States, and to reduce costs.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Thu, 20 Jan 2022 14:12:23 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1904966</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Maintenance and Restriping Strategies for Pavement Markings in Louisiana</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1751119</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The objective of this study is to evaluate the “Expected Service Life Method” to maintain retroreflectivity at or above the appropriate threshold in the selection and maintenance of pavement markings. To achieve this objective, a decision tree (or performance models) would be developed to determine the Pavement Marking Service Life (PMSL) based on the project conditions, including pavement marking material type, pavement type, traffic volumes, climate, marking color, etc. To facilitate the implementation of this study, an enhanced decision-making tool will be developed, which could be used by transportation agencies to determine the optimal timing for pavement marking replacement with minimal risk of under restriping or over restriping based on the specific project conditions. This tool can be envisioned as a baseline for transportation agencies to meet the minimum levels of retroreflectivity proposed by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) without incurring additional costs.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 10 Nov 2020 15:05:27 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1751119</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Designing and Applying a Decision Support System for DOT Fleet Assignment and Operation: Phase 2</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1401985</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Striping operations generate a significant workload for MoDOT maintenance operations. The requirement for each striping crew to replenish its stock of paint and other consumable items from a bulk storage facility, along with the necessity to make several passes on most of the routes to stripe all the lines on that road, introduce the potential for inefficiencies in the form of deadhead miles that striping crew vehicles must travel while not actively applying pavement markings. These inefficiencies generate unnecessary travel, wasted time, and vehicle wear.

Phase 2 updates a 2015 project that developed a decision support tool for scheduling and routing road striping operations. The updates presented in the final report improve the optimization model, which generates more user-friendly outputs.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Fri, 25 Mar 2016 09:49:53 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1401985</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Designing and Applying a Decision Support System for DOT Fleet Assignment and Operation</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1352389</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The goal of this project is to develop decision support tools that utilize optimization models to increase the efficiency of striping operations.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Sat, 02 May 2015 01:01:04 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1352389</guid>
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