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SECTION V
Description of Strategies
Objectives
The main goals of this guide are to reduce fatal work zone traffic crashes and to improve
the overall work zone traffic safety for workers, motorists, and other highway users.
Specific objectives include improvements in work zone engineering practices; enforcement
of traffic laws and regulations; education of drivers, designers, and highway workers; and
improvement of agency policies and procedures. The objectives for improving safety in
work zones are as follows:
· 19.1 A Reduce the number, duration, and impact of work zones--Reducing the exposure
of travelers to work zones and of workers to traffic will lessen the opportunities for
crashes to occur. This can be accomplished using maintenance and construction practices
that increase pavement and bridge service life, accelerate construction and maintenance
activities where possible, schedule highway work to avoid periods of high traffic
volumes, and provide adequate space for future road work in new project development.
· 19.1 B Improve work zone traffic control devices--Work zones often present a higher
driver-information and vehicular-control workload than nonwork zones. The devices
used to convey information to drivers and to alert them to the presence of workers and
potential roadway hazards need to be visible and have a clear and consistent meaning.
Visibility of workers (especially flaggers) and their vehicles is necessary for the
protection of both workers and highway users.
· 19.1 C Improve work zone design practices--Addressing safety for both highway users
and workers in the planning stages of a project can help reduce the potential for crashes
related to the work zone. Establishing work zone design guidance, including providing
consistent design features across a jurisdiction, provides highway users with an
environment that better meets their expectations. Positive protection of the work space
from the traffic separation can help reduce potential for conflicts between road users
and/or workers. The design of work zones can help improve safety for all users by
providing cues for, and accommodation of, both motorized vehicles and nonmotorized
travelers.
· 19.1 D Improve driver compliance with work zone traffic controls--Many crashes are
caused or aggravated by drivers' noncompliance with traffic control devices or traffic
laws in work zones. Enforcement campaigns (conventional or automated) have the
potential to reduce undesirable driver behavior and improve safety in work zones. Signs
that convey credible messages regarding speed limits or presence of workers contribute
to driver compliance with traffic laws.
· 19.1 E Increase knowledge and awareness of work zones--Training of highway users,
designers, and workers can improve how work zones are designed, set up, and used.
Public information and education campaigns can help improve driver skills in guiding
vehicles through work zones. Training programs for agency staff and workers can help
V-1
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SECTION V--DESCRIPTION OF STRATEGIES
ensure that traffic control devices designed and set up in work zones are appropriate and
provide positive guidance, rather than create additional clutter and driver confusion.
· 19.1 F Develop procedures to effectively manage work zones--Work zone management
practices, such as crash data system improvements, safety awards, interagency
coordination, and inspections, can help bring about an improvement in work zone safety
at an agency level.
Exhibit V-1 shows the strategies of these objectives. The order in which the strategies appear
does not imply a priority with which they should be considered. Ultimately, the goal toward
which the objectives and strategies are directed is to improve work zone safety for road
users and workers.
Most of the strategies are relatively low-cost, short-term treatments to improve safety in
work zones, consistent with the focus of the entire SHSP. For each of these strategies, a
detailed discussion of the attributes, effectiveness, and other key factors describing the
strategy is presented below. Several high-cost, long-term strategies that have been proven
effective in improving safety in work zones are also presented in this section, but in less
detail. While application of these strategies is outside the implementation framework of the
SHSP, inclusion of these strategies in this guide serves to complete the picture of proven,
tried, and experimental strategies to improve safety in work zones.
EXHIBIT V-1
Emphasis Area Objectives and Strategies
Objectives Strategies
19.1 A Reduce the number, 19.1 A1 Improve maintenance and construction practices (P)
duration, and impact of work
zones 19.1 A2 Utilize full-time roadway closure for construction operations (T)
19.1 A3 Utilize time-related contract provisions (P)
19.1 A4 Use nighttime road work (P)
19.1 A5 Use demand management programs to reduce volumes through
work zones (P)
19.1 A6 Design future work zone capacity into new or reconstructed
highways (T)
19.1 B Improve work zone 19.1 B1 Implement ITS strategies to improve safety (E)
traffic control devices
19.1 B2 Improve visibility of work zone traffic control devices (T)
19.1 B3 Improve visibility of work zone personnel and vehicles (varies)
19.1 B4 Reduce flaggers' exposure to traffic (T)
19.1 C Improve work zone 19.1 C1 Establish work zone design guidance (T)
design practices
19.1 C2 Implement measures to reduce work space intrusions (and limit
consequences of intrusions) (T)
19.1 C3 Improve work zone safety for pedestrians, bicyclists, motorcyclists,
and heavy-truck drivers (T)
V-2
