Analysis of Fatal Crashes in Georgia Work Zones

2000 ◽  
Vol 1715 (1) ◽  
pp. 18-23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janice Daniel ◽  
Karen Dixon ◽  
David Jared
Keyword(s):  
Work Zone ◽  
Clear Understanding ◽  
Department Of Transportation ◽  
Work Zones ◽  
Vertical Alignment ◽  
Fatal Crash ◽  
Fatal Crashes ◽  
Construction Activity ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Using Data

Studies on work zone crashes typically examine a combination of injury, fatal, and property damage crashes to identify factors that contribute to unsafe conditions within work zones. Few studies focus on fatal crashes within work zones, although a clear understanding of the driver, roadway, and work zone conditions associated with fatal crashes will facilitate the development of strategies aimed at improving safety and reducing fatal as well as nonfatal crashes. The Georgia Department of Transportation recently performed a study to identify the manner of collision, location, and construction activity associated with fatal crashes in work zones. This study is expanded further to examine the difference between fatal crash activity within work zones compared with fatal crashes in non-work-zone locations. Using data from three work zone locations in Georgia, fatal crash activity within work zones also was compared with nonfatal crashes within work zones. Finally, fatal crash activity was examined to determine the influence of the work zone activity on the frequency of fatal crashes. The overall findings of the study indicate that the work zone influences the manner of collision, light conditions, truck involvement, and roadway functional classification under which fatal crashes occur. The study also indicates that fatal crashes in work zones are more likely to involve another vehicle than non-work-zone fatal crashes, and fatal crashes in work zones are less influenced by horizontal and vertical alignment than are non-work-zone crashes.

Validating the Performance of the FHWA Work Zone Model Version 1.0: A Case Study along I-91 in Springfield, Massachusetts

2018 ◽  
Vol 2672 (16) ◽  
pp. 46-56 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew Berthaume ◽  
Lauren Jackson ◽  
Ian Berg ◽  
Brian O’Donnell ◽  
Christopher L. Melson
Keyword(s):  
Performance Metrics ◽  
Near Field ◽  
Work Zone ◽  
Driver Model ◽  
Zone Model ◽  
Work Zones ◽  
Simulation Tools ◽  
Zone Management ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Model Components

Central to the effective design of work zones is being able to understand how drivers behave as they approach and enter a work zone area. States use simulation tools in modeling freeway work zones to predict work zone impacts and to select optimal design and deployment strategies. While simple and complex microscopic models have been used over the years to analyze driver behavior, most models were not designed for application in work zones. Using data collected from an instrumented research vehicle and model components from two PhD dissertations, FHWA created the Work Zone Driver Model and programed the Work Zone Driver Model DLL v1.0, a software that could override car-following in commercial microsimulation software packages so that practitioners can better predict work zone impacts. This paper demonstrates the capabilities of the FHWA Work Zone Driver Model DLL v1.0, interfaced with VISSIM and tested on an Interstate work zone in Springfield, Massachusetts. The dynamic link library’s (DLL’s) performance is compared with field data collected using an instrumented research vehicle and to Weidemann 99 in VISSIM. Performance metrics were selected to align with state department of transportation work zone management efforts. Results showed acceptable performance from the DLL, as it predicted queue locations and travel speeds that were near field observations. Limitations of the DLL and interface are discussed, and opportunities for improving version 2.0 are described.

Work Zone Coordination Software Tool

2017 ◽  
Vol 2617 (1) ◽  
pp. 60-70 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bekir Bartin ◽  
Kaan Ozbay ◽  
Matthew D. Maggio ◽  
Hao Wang
Keyword(s):  
New Jersey ◽  
Construction Projects ◽  
Software Tool ◽  
Work Zone ◽  
Department Of Transportation ◽  
Work Zones ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Departments Of Transportation ◽  
Transportation Agencies

Faced with a growing number of work zones, transportation agencies are being challenged to effectively manage the impacts of these zones, alleviate congestion, and maintain the safety of motorists and workers without disrupting project schedules. Coordinating work zones has already been practiced by various state departments of transportation and transportation agencies, yet there are no universal department of transportation policies that address how agencies should coordinate or consolidate projects. In addition, only a few states utilize computer tools specific to regional or corridor-based work zone coordination. State departments of transportation mostly coordinate significant and long-term projects. However, the majority of roadway projects include minor repair, roadway maintenance, bridge maintenance, surveying, and landscape and utility work that require relatively short-term work zones. The Work Zone Coordination Software tool was developed to provide the New Jersey Department of Transportation with an easy-to-use tool to evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of coordinating short- and long-term work zones and to measure the benefits. This online tool is implemented with a web-based user interface. It integrates all scheduled and active construction projects, identifies conflicts between work zone projects, and estimates the benefits of conflict mitigation. The Work Zone Coordination Software tool works with the New Jersey work zone database by automatically importing data to provide up-to-date information to its users. However, the tool is built on a flexible framework that allows the integration of any work zone database provided that it includes all the required information.

scholarly journals Correlating Hard-Braking Activity with Crash Occurrences on Interstate Construction Projects in Indiana

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jairaj Desai ◽  
Howell Li ◽  
Jijo K. Mathew ◽  
Yi-Ting Cheng ◽  
Ayman Habib ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Construction Projects ◽  
Work Zone ◽  
Construction Site ◽  
Event Data ◽  
Construction Work ◽  
Work Zones ◽  
Fatal Crashes ◽  
Federal Highway

AbstractThe Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) reported between 2016 and 2017, fatal crashes in work zones increased by 3%, while fatal crashes outside of work zones decreased by 1.5%. The FHWA also reported that work zones account for approximately 10% of the nation’s overall congestion and 24% of unexpected interstate delays. This paper reports on a study of 23 construction work zones that covered approximately 150 centerline miles of Indiana interstate roadway in the summer of 2019. Approximately 50% of all interstate crashes for the period of May to September 2019 occurred within or in an approach upstream or downstream of one of these work zones. Commercially available vehicle hard-braking event data is used for the study and geofenced to the work zone approaches and limits. This research examined 196,215 hard-braking events over a 2-month period in the summer of 2019 and 3132 crashes over the same 2-month period in 2018 and 2019 for the 23 interstate work zones. The study found there were approximately 1 crash/mile for every 147 hard-braking events in and around a construction site. The R2 was approximately 0.85. The paper concludes by recommending that hard-braking event data be used by agencies to quickly identify emerging work zone locations that show relatively large number of hard-braking events for further evaluation.

Crash Testing and Evaluation of Work Zone Barricades

1998 ◽  
Vol 1650 (1) ◽  
pp. 36-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roger P. Bligh ◽  
King K. Mak ◽  
Lewis R. Rhodes
Keyword(s):  
Traffic Control ◽  
Work Zone ◽  
Department Of Transportation ◽  
Work Zones ◽  
Impact Performance ◽  
Crash Testing ◽  
Texas Department ◽  
Control Devices ◽  
Traffic Control Devices ◽  
The Impact

Proper traffic control and delineation are critical to achieving safety in work zones. However, the work zone traffic control devices themselves may pose a safety hazard to vehicle occupants or work crews when impacted by errant vehicles. Thus, there was a need to research the safety performance of work zone traffic control devices to ensure that they perform satisfactorily and meet NCHRP Report 350 guidelines. Several research studies sponsored by the Texas Department of Transportation evaluated the impact performance of various work zone traffic control devices, such as temporary and portable sign supports, plastic drums, sign substrates for use with plastic drums, traffic cones, and vertical panels. Specifically addressed are the studies on barricades. Standard wooden barricade construction was found to be unacceptable due to a demonstrated potential for intrusion of fractured members into the occupant compartment. In response to deficiencies identified in the wooden barricade tests, several alternate barricade designs were developed and successfully tested.

Evaluation of Orange Removable Rumble Strips for Highway Work Zones

2000 ◽  
Vol 1715 (1) ◽  
pp. 36-42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric Meyer
Keyword(s):  
New Product ◽  
Work Zone ◽  
Department Of Transportation ◽  
Work Zones ◽  
Repair Site ◽  
Maintenance Work

Rumble strips can be effective in alerting drivers to road conditions that merit special attention. The Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) requires the deployment of rumble strips on state routes during maintenance work that necessitates the closure of a lane on a two-lane highway. In such a case, a temporary signal is placed at each end of the work zone, and rumble strips are used to alert drivers that they may need to stop. Currently, cold-mix asphalt is used to create the rumble strips. A new product, orange removable rumble strips, promises to reduce significantly the effort required to apply and to remove rumble strips, while improving safety by increased conspicuity. These removable rumble strips were evaluated at a bridge repair site in rural Kansas. Vehicle speeds were recorded with only the standard asphalt rumble strips in place; then the removable rumble strips were installed and more speed data were collected. Installation and removal times also were compared. Strips were easily applied and easily removed. The audible and tactile effects of the strips were weak due to their 3.2-mm (1/8-in.) thickness in comparison with the 12.7 to 19 mm (1/2 to 3/4 in.) thickness of standard asphalt rumble strips. However, the orange removable rumble strips were found to have a significant effect on vehicle speeds, attributable to their high visibility. KDOT plans to conduct another evaluation using a version of the same device that is 20 percent thicker.

Motorists' Understanding of Automated Flagger Assistance Devices in Work Zones

2013 ◽  
Vol 2337 (1) ◽  
pp. 42-49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nada D. Trout ◽  
Melisa D. Finley ◽  
Brooke R. Ullman
Keyword(s):  
The Other ◽  
Vehicular Traffic ◽  
Department Of Transportation ◽  
Work Zones ◽  
Right Of Way ◽  
Texas Department ◽  
The Difference ◽  
The Right ◽  
Do So

Automated flagger assistance devices (AFADs) are designed to be operated remotely by a flagger positioned outside the travel lanes and thus to reduce their exposure to vehicular traffic. There are two types of AFADs: one type uses a remote-controlled stop and slow sign to alternate the right-of-way and the other uses remote-controlled red and yellow lenses to alternate the right-of-way. A gate arm is required only with the latter. Although AFADs may have increased the safety of flaggers, there were concerns that motorists might have misunderstood AFADs and proceeded before it had been safe to do so. As part of a recent Texas Department of Transportation project, Texas A&M Transportation Institute researchers conducted surveys to assess motorists' understanding of both types of AFADs. For the stop–slow AFAD, a newly designed “Wait on Stop–Go on Slow” symbol sign resulted in the highest percentage of participants who understood that they should stop and remain stopped until the AFAD indicated that it was safe to proceed. However, for all of the stop–slow AFAD treatments, a portion of the participants indicated that they would have stopped and then proceeded instead of waiting until the AFAD displayed the slow sign. Thus researchers recommend that a gate arm be required with stop–slow AFADs. For the red–yellow lens AFAD, participants understood the stop phase. However, there was evidence of a lack of understanding of the difference between the proceed and transition phases. Even so, the use of the gate arm appeared to inform motorists when to proceed and when to stop.

Immersive Work Zone Inspection Training using Virtual Reality

2020 ◽  
Vol 2674 (12) ◽  
pp. 224-232
Author(s):  
Khaled Aati ◽  
Daeyeol Chang ◽  
Praveen Edara ◽  
Carlos Sun
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Reality ◽  
Traffic Control ◽  
Work Zone ◽  
Department Of Transportation ◽  
Work Zones ◽  
Historical Knowledge ◽  
Learning Module ◽  
Actual Experience ◽  
Control Procedures ◽  
Training Practice

Can virtual reality tools be used to train engineers that inspect work zones? In this paper, we share the findings of a research project that developed an interactive and immersive training platform using virtual reality to train state department of transportation (DOT) staff that inspect work zones for compliance. Virtual reality offers an immersive platform that closely replicates the actual experience of an inspector driving through a work zone, but in a safer, cheaper, and quicker way than field visits. The current training practice involves reviewing temporary traffic control procedures, and reports and pictures from previous inspections. The developed platform consists of a learning module and an immersive module. The learning module is founded on the historical knowledge gained by DOT staff from inspections dating back at least 5 years. This knowledge incorporated representative inspection reports from previous years from all DOT districts including photographs of deficiencies. The synthesized knowledge was converted into a concise easy-to-consume format for training. The immersive module places the trainee in a vehicle moving through a work zone, thus providing a realistic experience to the engineer before inspecting a real work zone. The research team developed and tested two immersive scenarios of a freeway work zone. The training platform was tested by 34 individuals that worked for the Missouri Department of Transportation. An overwhelming majority (97%) agreed that virtual reality offered a realistic and effective way to train inspectors.

scholarly journals Effect of Work Zone Lighting on Drivers’ Visual Performance and Perceptions of Glare

2017 ◽  
Vol 2617 (1) ◽  
pp. 44-51 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rajaram Bhagavathula ◽  
Ronald B. Gibbons
Keyword(s):  
Detection Task ◽  
Construction Workers ◽  
Work Zone ◽  
Visual Performance ◽  
Department Of Transportation ◽  
Work Zones ◽  
Light Levels ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Virginia Smart Road ◽  
The U.S

Nighttime crashes at work zones are major concerns for construction workers and motorists. Although in a majority of the U.S. states, department of transportation specifications for work zone lighting mention that contractors should reduce glare for workers and drivers, only two states advocate detailed specifications like light positions, orientation, and light levels. Although some studies have examined the impact of glare from work zone lights on workers and others have calculated veiling luminance levels for drivers in the work zone, the effect of work zone lighting on drivers’ visual performance and glare perception has never been studied in a realistic setting. The goal of this study was to understand the impact of commercially available portable light towers (metal halide, LED, and balloon) and their orientation on drivers’ visual performance and their perceptions of glare. Participants drove through a realistic work zone simulated on the Virginia Smart Road. Visual performance was assessed by a detection task and perception of visibility and glare were assessed by questionnaires. Results indicated that the type of light tower and its orientation affect visual performance and perceptions of visibility and glare. Light towers aimed toward the driver resulted in lowering drivers’ visual performance, both objectively and subjectively. When the light towers were aimed away from or perpendicular to the driver, the visual performance was higher and the differences in visual performance between the types of light towers were minimal. These findings indicate that these orientations should be preferred for work zone light towers.

scholarly journals Optimization of Work Zone Segments on Urban Roads Using Cellular Automata Model in Mixed Traffic

2018 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-35
Author(s):  
Mohit Kumar Singh ◽  
Gaurav Pandey ◽  
K Ramachandra Rao
Keyword(s):  
Cellular Automata ◽  
Work Zone ◽  
Work Zones ◽  
Rational Form ◽  
Zone Length ◽  
Cellular Automata Model ◽  
The Road ◽  
Traffic Characteristics ◽  
On The Road ◽  
Using Data

Increased delays and reduced speeds in work zones leads to congestion. This can be improved by optimizing the work zone length. The focus of this study is to model work zones using cellular automata model and to find the effects of work zones on traffic flow. The methodology adopted in the study involved creating work-zone on the road by blocking some of the cells and then determining traffic characteristics such as delay and queue lengths for model validation. For this the lateral movement rules of the existing Cellular Automata model were modified in order to replicate the traffic movement near work zones. This model is calibrated and validated using data from work zone observed near a metro rail station in Delhi. From the analysis it was evident that the queue length increased with increase in the length of work zone. Several relationships were tried between delay and work zone length. Among them the rational form was found suitable.

The Impact of Customer Loyalty and Restaurant Sanitation Grades on Revisit Intention and the Importance of Narrative Information: The Case of New York Restaurant Sanitation Grading System

2017 ◽  
Vol 59 (3) ◽  
pp. 275-284 ◽  
Author(s):  
Min Gyung Kim ◽  
Hyunjoo Yang ◽  
Anna S. Mattila
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
New York City ◽  
Customer Loyalty ◽  
York City ◽  
Letter Grades ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Revisit Intentions ◽  
Using Data ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Loyal Customers

New York City launched a restaurant sanitation letter grade system in 2010. We evaluate the impact of customer loyalty on restaurant revisit intentions after exposure to a sanitation grade alone, and after exposure to a sanitation grade plus narrative information about sanitation violations (e.g., presence of rats). We use a 2 (loyalty: high or low) × 4 (sanitation grade: A, B, C, or pending) between-subjects full factorial design to test the hypotheses using data from 547 participants recruited from Amazon MTurk who reside in the New York City area. Our study yields three findings. First, loyal customers exhibit higher intentions to revisit restaurants than non-loyal customers, regardless of sanitation letter grades. Second, the difference in revisit intentions between loyal and non-loyal customers is higher when sanitation grades are poorer. Finally, loyal customers are less sensitive to narrative information about sanitation violations.

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