Making Work Zones Work Better

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Making Work Zones Work Better
Talking Freight Seminar June 20, 2006

• Chung Eng
• Work Zone Mobility Safety Team
• Office of Transportation Operations
• Federal Highway Administration
• US Department of Transportation

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(No Transcript)
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Agenda
Work Zones

• What Do We Know?
• What Can Be Done?
• What is FHWA Doing?

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Work Zones What We Know

• Our highway infrastructure is aging
• Construction work is increasing
• Growth in VMT is outpacing the addition of new
  lane miles
• Congestion is growing

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Growth in Wasted Hours

• Congestion has increased dramatically over the
  past 2 decades.
• In the 13 largest cities, drivers spend the
  equivalent of almost eight work days each year
  stuck in traffic.
• Work Zones account for 10 of overall congestion.

Annual Hours Lost to Congestion Per Peak Hour
Driver Very Large Metro Areas, 1983 v. 2003
Source Texas Transportation Institute, 2005
Urban Mobility Report
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Cost of Congestion to U.S. Businesses
Portland General Electric estimates that it
spends around 500K/year for additional travel
time for maintenance crews due to congestion. In
2000, congestion at the Ambassador Bridge between
Detroit, Michigan and Windsor, cost motor
carriers between 150M and 200M.
Intel has moved their last shipment departure
time up two hours for outbound shipments through
PDX due to increased pm peak congestion. Atlanta
area distributor of pet food with an 11-truck
fleet finds it difficult for one truck to make
more than 12 daily deliveries in 1984, one truck
made as many as 20 deliveries each day.
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Work Zones What We Know

• Our highway infrastructure is aging
• Construction work is increasing
• Growth in VMT is outpacing the addition of new
  lane miles
• Congestion is growing
• Crashes are increasing

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Work Zones What We KnowCrashes are Increasing
According to a Federal Motor Carrier Safety
Administration analysis, approximately 25 of
work zone fatal crashes in 2005 involved a large
truck.
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What Can Be Done?

• To reduce work zone delay
• To reduce crashes, fatalities, and injuries?

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What Can be Done to Make Work Zones Work Better?

• Recognize impacts early and develop projects to
  include strategies that minimize impacts
• Look for ways to reduce exposure
• Reduce number work zones
• Reduce duration of work zones
• Work during off-peak periods
• Consider full closures as appropriate
• Provide information to drivers
• Reduce hazards in work zones

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What is FHWA doing?

• Issued Work Zone Safety and Mobility Rule
• Identifying promoting best practices
• Providing training
• Providing guidance
• Providing technical assistance and facilitating
  information sharing

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WZ Safety and Mobility Rule

• Published Sept 2004 Compliance by Oct 2007
• Major Provisions
• Develop Implement a WZ Policy
• Implement Processes and Procedures to Support the
  Policy
• - WZ impacts assessment management
• - Training
• - Use of safety operational data
• - Process reviews
• Implement Project Procedures
• - Identify significant projects
• - Develop transportation management plans (TMPs)

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WZ Safety and Mobility Rule

• What We Expect to See
• More focus on system impacts versus individual WZ
  site impacts
• WZs impacts considered throughout project
  delivery process
• More WZ training
• More effective communication with the public
• Safer WZs
• More performance monitoring and assessment

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Work Zone Best Practices

• Best Practices Guide
• Case Studies
• Fact Sheets

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Training

• New NHI Course Advanced Work Zone Management
• Work Zone Law Enforcement Training
• WZ Safety and Awareness Program for New Drivers
• Quick Zone Training
• Work Zone Safety Grants Development of Training
  Guidance

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Guidance

• Implementing the Rule on WZ Safety Mobility
• WZ Public Information Outreach Strategies
• Developing Implementing TMPs for Work Zones
• WZ Impacts Assessment

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Technical Assistance

• Work Zone Peer-to-Peer Program (WZ P2P)
  Provides short-term assistance in the application
  of methods, tools, and strategies to improve WZ
  safety and mobility.

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For More Information . . .

• Chung Eng, FHWA Work Zone Team Leader,
  chung.eng_at_fhwa.dot.gov
• Tracy Scriba, FHWA Work Zone Team
  tracy.scriba_at_fhwa.dot.gov
• FHWA Work Zone Website, http//www.fhwa.dot.gov/wo
  rkzones