Guidance for Safe and Effective Temporary Traffic Control for Mobile Operations on Two-Lane Two-Way Roadways
Multi-vehicle mobile operations on two-lane two-way roadways present unique challenges to highway agencies, not the least of which is the highly variable conditions encountered in the field. These conditions include the number of vehicles in the work convoy, travel speed of the work convoy, posted speeds, roadway geometry, time of day, weather, and average daily traffic on the roadway. Highway agencies are therefore challenged with developing temporary traffic control (TTC) procedures that ensure safe and effective operations under these highly variable conditions. Highway workers face many hazards during mobile operations on two-lane roadways. From 2003 through 2015, 1,571 workers lost their lives at road construction sites (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2017). Many of these hazards are a direct result of motorists driving behaviors when encountering a work convoy. Examples of this behavior includes erratic driving, speeding, entering the convoy, failure to follow signage (which may be due to misunderstanding traffic control devices), impatience with the delay caused by the slower speed of the mobile operation, and distracted driving. Temporary traffic control for most mobile operations has been limited to arrow panels and static warning signs mounted on the back of work vehicles, which may be misunderstood by motorists. Research is needed to enhance the safety of mobile operations by reducing opportunities for poor driver decisions through the use of safer and more effective temporary traffic control procedures. The objective of this research is to develop guidance to enhance safety and effectiveness of mobile operations on two-lane, two-way roadways under variable conditions. The guidance should address all aspects of mobile operations from planning (when to use mobile operations vs. other methods for lane closures) through implementation, and be useable by any entity involved in mobile operations.
Language
- English
Project
- Status: Active
- Funding: $300000
-
Contract Numbers:
Project 03-132
-
Sponsor Organizations:
National Cooperative Highway Research Program
Transportation Research Board
500 Fifth Street, NW
Washington, DC United States 20001American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO)
444 North Capitol Street, NW
Washington, DC United States 20001Federal Highway Administration
1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
Washington, DC United States 20590 -
Project Managers:
Rogers, William
-
Performing Organizations:
Texas A&M Transportation Institute
Texas A&M University System
3135 TAMU
College Station, TX United States 77843-3135 -
Principal Investigators:
Theiss, LuAnn
- Start Date: 20180514
- Expected Completion Date: 20201231
- Actual Completion Date: 0
- Source Data: RiP Project 41599
Subject/Index Terms
- TRT Terms: State departments of transportation; State of the practice; Two lane highways; Variable message signs; Work zone safety; Work zone traffic control
- Identifier Terms: California Department of Transportation; Texas Department of Transportation; Wyoming Department of Transportation
- Subject Areas: Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; Safety and Human Factors;
Filing Info
- Accession Number: 01634651
- Record Type: Research project
- Source Agency: Transportation Research Board
- Contract Numbers: Project 03-132
- Files: TRB, RiP
- Created Date: May 12 2017 1:00AM