Separation of Vehicles—CMV-Only Lanes (2010)

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TRANSPORTAT ION RESEARCH BOARD WASHINGTON, D.C. 2010 www.TRB.org N A T I O N A L C O O P E R A T I V E H I G H W A Y R E S E A R C H P R O G R A M NCHRP REPORT 649 N A T I O N A L C O O P E R A T I V E F R E I G H T R E S E A R C H P R O G R A M NCFRP REPORT 3 Subscriber Categories Construction • Design • Economics • Finance • Freight Transportation • Highways Motor Carriers • Operations and Traffic Management • Policy Separation of Vehicles— CMV-Only Lanes CAMBRIDGE SYSTEMATICS, INC. Oakland, CA Research sponsored by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials in cooperation with the Federal Highway Administration and by the Research and Innovative Technology Administration

NATIONAL COOPERATIVE HIGHWAY RESEARCH PROGRAM Systematic, well-designed research provides the most effective approach to the solution of many problems facing highway administrators and engineers. Often, highway problems are of local interest and can best be studied by highway departments individually or in cooperation with their state universities and others. However, the accelerating growth of highway transportation develops increasingly complex problems of wide interest to highway authorities. These problems are best studied through a coordinated program of cooperative research. In recognition of these needs, the highway administrators of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials initiated in 1962 an objective national highway research program employing modern scientific techniques. This program is supported on a continuing basis by funds from participating member states of the Association and it receives the full cooperation and support of the Federal Highway Administration, United States Department of Transportation. The Transportation Research Board of the National Academies was requested by the Association to administer the research program because of the Board’s recognized objectivity and understanding of modern research practices. The Board is uniquely suited for this purpose as it maintains an extensive committee structure from which authorities on any highway transportation subject may be drawn; it possesses avenues of communications and cooperation with federal, state and local governmental agencies, universities, and industry; its relationship to the National Research Council is an insurance of objectivity; it maintains a full-time research correlation staff of specialists in highway transportation matters to bring the findings of research directly to those who are in a position to use them. The program is developed on the basis of research needs identified by chief administrators of the highway and transportation departments and by committees of AASHTO. Each year, specific areas of research needs to be included in the program are proposed to the National Research Council and the Board by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. Research projects to fulfill these needs are defined by the Board, and qualified research agencies are selected from those that have submitted proposals. Administration and surveillance of research contracts are the responsibilities of the National Research Council and the Transportation Research Board. The needs for highway research are many, and the National Cooperative Highway Research Program can make significant contributions to the solution of highway transportation problems of mutual concern to many responsible groups. The program, however, is intended to complement rather than to substitute for or duplicate other highway research programs. Published reports of the NATIONAL COOPERATIVE HIGHWAY RESEARCH PROGRAM are available from: Transportation Research Board Business Office 500 Fifth Street, NW Washington, DC 20001 and can be ordered through the Internet at: http://www.national-academies.org/trb/bookstore Printed in the United States of America NCHRP REPORT 649 Project 3-73 ISSN 0077-5614 ISBN 978-0-309-15475-8 Library of Congress Control Number 2010928781 © 2010 National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved. COPYRIGHT INFORMATION Authors herein are responsible for the authenticity of their materials and for obtaining written permissions from publishers or persons who own the copyright to any previously published or copyrighted material used herein. Cooperative Research Programs (CRP) grants permission to reproduce material in this publication for classroom and not-for-profit purposes. Permission is given with the understanding that none of the material will be used to imply TRB, AASHTO, FAA, FHWA, FMCSA, FTA, or Transit Development Corporation endorsement of a particular product, method, or practice. It is expected that those reproducing the material in this document for educational and not-for-profit uses will give appropriate acknowledgment of the source of any reprinted or reproduced material. For other uses of the material, request permission from CRP. NOTICE The project that is the subject of this report was a part of the National Cooperative Highway Research Program, conducted by the Transportation Research Board with the approval of the Governing Board of the National Research Council. The members of the technical panel selected to monitor this project and to review this report were chosen for their special competencies and with regard for appropriate balance. The report was reviewed by the technical panel and accepted for publication according to procedures established and overseen by the Transportation Research Board and approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council. The opinions and conclusions expressed or implied in this report are those of the researchers who performed the research and are not necessarily those of the Transportation Research Board, the National Research Council, or the program sponsors. The Transportation Research Board of the National Academies, the National Research Council, and the sponsors of the National Cooperative Highway Research Program do not endorse products or manufacturers. Trade or manufacturers’ names appear herein solely because they are considered essential to the object of the report.

NATIONAL COOPERATIVE FREIGHT RESEARCH PROGRAM America’s freight transportation system makes critical contributions to the nation’s economy, security, and quality of life. The freight transportation system in the United States is a complex, decentralized, and dynamic network of private and public entities, involving all modes of transportation—trucking, rail, waterways, air, and pipelines. In recent years, the demand for freight transportation service has been increasing fueled by growth in international trade; however, bottlenecks or congestion points in the system are exposing the inadequacies of current infrastructure and operations to meet the growing demand for freight. Strategic operational and investment decisions by governments at all levels will be necessary to maintain freight system performance, and will in turn require sound technical guidance based on research. The National Cooperative Freight Research Program (NCFRP) is a cooperative research program sponsored by the Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA) under Grant No. DTOS59-06-G-00039 and administered by the Transportation Research Board (TRB). The program was authorized in 2005 with the passage of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU). On September 6, 2006, a contract to begin work was executed between RITA and The National Academies. The NCFRP will carry out applied research on problems facing the freight industry that are not being adequately addressed by existing research programs. Program guidance is provided by an Oversight Committee comprised of a representative cross section of freight stakeholders appointed by the National Research Council of The National Academies. The NCFRP Oversight Committee meets annually to formulate the research program by identifying the highest priority projects and defining funding levels and expected products. Research problem statements recommending research needs for consideration by the Oversight Committee are solicited annually, but may be submitted to TRB at any time. Each selected project is assigned to a panel, appointed by TRB, which provides technical guidance and counsel throughout the life of the project. Heavy emphasis is placed on including members representing the intended users of the research products. The NCFRP will produce a series of research reports and other products such as guidebooks for practitioners. Primary emphasis will be placed on disseminating NCFRP results to the intended end-users of the research: freight shippers and carriers, service providers, suppliers, and public officials. Published reports of the NATIONAL COOPERATIVE FREIGHT RESEARCH PROGRAM are available from: Transportation Research Board Business Office 500 Fifth Street, NW Washington, DC 20001 and can be ordered through the Internet at: http://www.national-academies.org/trb/bookstore Printed in the United States of America NCFRP REPORT 3 Project NCFRP-10 ISSN 1947-5659 ISBN 978-0-309-15475-8 Library of Congress Control Number 2010928781 © 2010 National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved. COPYRIGHT INFORMATION Authors herein are responsible for the authenticity of their materials and for obtaining written permissions from publishers or persons who own the copyright to any previously published or copyrighted material used herein. Cooperative Research Programs (CRP) grants permission to reproduce material in this publication for classroom and not-for-profit purposes. Permission is given with the understanding that none of the material will be used to imply TRB, AASHTO, FAA, FHWA, FMCSA, FTA, RITA, or PHMSA endorsement of a particular product, method, or practice. It is expected that those reproducing the material in this document for educational and not- for-profit uses will give appropriate acknowledgment of the source of any reprinted or reproduced material. For other uses of the material, request permission from CRP. NOTICE The project that is the subject of this report was a part of the National Cooperative Freight Research Program, conducted by the Transportation Research Board with the approval of the Governing Board of the National Research Council. The members of the technical panel selected to monitor this project and to review this report were chosen for their special competencies and with regard for appropriate balance. The report was reviewed by the technical panel and accepted for publication according to procedures established and overseen by the Transportation Research Board and approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council. The opinions and conclusions expressed or implied in this report are those of the researchers who performed the research and are not necessarily those of the Transportation Research Board, the National Research Council, or the program sponsors. The Transportation Research Board of the National Academies, the National Research Council, and the sponsors of the National Cooperative Freight Research Program do not endorse products or manufacturers. Trade or manufacturers’ names appear herein solely because they are considered essential to the object of the report.

CRP STAFF FOR NCHRP REPORT 649/NCFRP REPORT 3 Christopher W. Jenks, Director, Cooperative Research Programs Crawford F. Jencks, Deputy Director, Cooperative Research Programs William C. Rogers, Senior Program Officer Charlotte Thomas, Senior Program Assistant Eileen P. Delaney, Director of Publications Hilary Freer, Senior Editor NCHRP PROJECT 3-73 PANEL/NCFRP PROJECT 10 PANEL Field of Traffic—Area of Operations and Control Mary Lynn Tischer, Federal Highway Administration, Washington, DC (formerly Virginia DOT, Richmond, VA) (Chair) Talvin Davis, New Jersey DOT, Trenton, NJ Coty “Reggie” Dupré, Dupré Transport LLC, Lafayette, LA John W. Fuller, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA James Gosnell, Los Angeles, CA Douglas S. McLeod, Florida DOT, Tallahassee, FL Charles E. Prestrud, Washington State DOT, Seattle, WA Todd G. Trego, American Transportation Research Institute, Smyrna, GA Arthur “Rey” Walker, Maryland State Highway Administration, Hanover, MD Michael P. Onder, FHWA Liaison Elaine King, TRB Liaison C O O P E R A T I V E R E S E A R C H P R O G R A M S

NCHRP Report 649/NCFRP Report 3: Separation of Vehicles—CMV-Only Lanes presents an extensive compendium of information about CMV-only lanes and examines major issues and concepts that should be understood in developing new applications of CMV-only lane concepts as a potential method for both easing congestion and reducing the number of traffic accidents on highways. Appendices to this report, including an annotated literature review, performance evaluation criteria, benefits monetization factors and unit costs, and net present value calculations for benefit-cost analysis, are available on the TRB website. This report and the supplemental information can be used by public agencies that may be considering CMV-only lane concepts in corridor studies or other planning applications. The report provides data such agencies can use to support their own evaluations of CMV- only lane projects. Because of the continued growth in both automobile and truck traffic, there is con- siderable interest in building CMV-only lanes as one solution to ever-increasing high- way congestion. System reliability is especially important in the movement of high- value, time-sensitive commodities; the assumed reliability of CMV-only lanes with the resulting improvements in truck productivity and operational efficiency may provide sufficient added value that truckers and shippers would be willing to pay to build and operate the highway lanes. Under NCHRP Project 03-73/NCFRP Project 10, the research team was asked to • Review and discuss the literature on existing and proposed CMV-only facilities, • Describe associated planning process issues, • Describe major CMV-only configurations and analyze key design issues, • Discuss opportunities to apply Intelligent Transportation System technologies, • Examine the feasibility of increased size and weight standards on such roads, • Examine factors related to the success of truck-only lane projects, • Examine the suitability of tolling and privatization of such roads, and • Suggest areas of future research to improve the understanding of the performance of CMV-only lanes. The research contained in this report was conducted by Cambridge Systematics. F O R E W O R D By William C. Rogers Staff Officer Transportation Research Board

1 Chapter 1 Introduction 1 1.1 Project Overview 2 1.2 Definition of Commercial Motor Vehicle 3 1.3 Overview of the Report 5 Chapter 2 Background and Key Concepts 5 2.1 Planning Process Issues 9 2.2 Configuration and Design Issues 13 2.3 Integration with Intelligent Transportation Systems 17 2.4 Longer Combination Vehicle Operations 20 2.5 Tolling and Privatization 24 Chapter 3 Performance Evaluation 24 3.1 Introduction 24 3.2 Performance Evaluation Approach 30 3.3 Performance Evaluation Results 51 3.4 Comparative Summary of Results and Conclusions 58 Chapter 4 Benefit-Cost Analysis 59 4.1 Benefit-Cost Analysis Approach 61 4.2 Performance Metrics Considered for Benefit-Cost Analysis 62 4.3 Data Inputs for Monetization of Performance Metrics 63 4.4 Unit Cost Data 63 4.5 Economic Assumptions for Net Present Value Analysis 63 4.6 Corridor Descriptions and Corridor-Specific Benefit-Cost Methodologies 70 4.7 Results of the Benefit-Cost Analysis 78 Chapter 5 Conclusions and Recommendations 79 5.1 Truck-Only Lanes in Long-Haul Intercity Corridors 84 5.2 Truck-Only Lanes in Urban Corridors 93 5.3 Proposed Research Program 96 References 98 Appendices C O N T E N T S