Determination of Encroachment Conditions in Work Zones

There were 96,626 crashes in work zones in 2015. This equates to one work zone crash every 5.4 minutes. Every day, 70 work zone crashes occurred that resulted in at least one injury, and every week, 12 work zone crashes occurred that resulted in at least one fatality. Previous research regarding work zone encroachments has also indicated that there is a higher frequency of fatalities in work zone crashes than non-work zone crashes. Thus, work zones may be an area where significant safety improvements can be made. While current data on work zone crashes suggests that work zones are at higher risk for crashes and fatal injuries, accurate data on the impact conditions associated with work zone crashes does not exist. Development of accurate encroachment data for work zones would indicate areas for improvement in the design of work zones and the safety barriers used therein and raise the level of safety in work zones for the travelling public and workers. Furthermore, if encroachments for work zones are significantly different than non-work zones, designers could balance temporary features and cost in work zones against use of higher cost features to provide the best use of state funds. The objective of this research program is to determine encroachment conditions associated with work zone crashes, including speed, angle, and vehicle mass, and determine if they are consistent with those previously determined for freeways.  

• Record URL:
  http://apps.trb.org/cmsfeed/TRBNetProjectDisplay.asp?ProjectID=4547
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Contract to a Performing Organization has not yet been awarded.

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Proposed
• Funding: $500000
• Contract Numbers:

  Project 03-134

• Sponsor Organizations:

  National Cooperative Highway Research Program

  Transportation Research Board
  500 Fifth Street, NW
  Washington, DC  United States  20001

  Federal Highway Administration

  1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590

  American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO)

  444 North Capitol Street, NW
  Washington, DC  United States  20001
• Project Managers:

  Rogers, William

• Start Date: 20180619
• Expected Completion Date: 0
• Actual Completion Date: 0

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Barriers (Roads); Data collection; Freeways; Traffic crashes; Work zone safety; Work zone traffic control
• Subject Areas: Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01669534
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: Transportation Research Board
• Contract Numbers: Project 03-134
• Files: TRB, RiP, USDOT
• Created Date: May 21 2018 3:07PM