National Academies Press: OpenBook

Very Short Duration Work Zone Safety for Maintenance and Other Activities (2019)

Chapter: Appendix A - Survey Questionnaire

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Suggested Citation:"Appendix A - Survey Questionnaire." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Very Short Duration Work Zone Safety for Maintenance and Other Activities. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25512.
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Suggested Citation:"Appendix A - Survey Questionnaire." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Very Short Duration Work Zone Safety for Maintenance and Other Activities. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25512.
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Page 53
Suggested Citation:"Appendix A - Survey Questionnaire." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Very Short Duration Work Zone Safety for Maintenance and Other Activities. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25512.
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Page 53
Page 54
Suggested Citation:"Appendix A - Survey Questionnaire." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Very Short Duration Work Zone Safety for Maintenance and Other Activities. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25512.
×
Page 54
Page 55
Suggested Citation:"Appendix A - Survey Questionnaire." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Very Short Duration Work Zone Safety for Maintenance and Other Activities. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25512.
×
Page 55
Page 56
Suggested Citation:"Appendix A - Survey Questionnaire." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Very Short Duration Work Zone Safety for Maintenance and Other Activities. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25512.
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Page 56

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A-1 A P P E N D I X A Survey Questionnaire Very Short Duration Work Zone Safety for Maintenance and Other Activities Very short duration work zone (VSDWZ) activities are those activities not defined in the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) under short duration or other types of temporary traffic control (TTC) zones. They usually last 1 to 20 minutes and include maintenance activities (e.g., patching, picking up debris, or placing traffic count tubes) where channelizing devices are not set up. VSDWZs reduce the exposure of workers and the inconvenience to traffic that standard TTC would create. At present, the policies and practices in place between various agencies for VSDWZ activities vary substantially. The work zone setup also varies by the type of maintenance or other very short duration activity and roadway characteristics (speed, AADT, number of lanes). Historically, during those activities, a large number of worker fatalities have occurred. INTRODUCTION As you know, mobile operations are those that move intermittently or continuously. They often involve frequent short stops and are similar to short duration operations. Mobile operations are required to have high-intensity rotating, flashing, oscillating, or strobe lights, signs, or special lighting on work vehicles. Short duration work occupies a location up to one hour. During short duration work, it often takes longer to set up and remove the TTC zone than to perform the work. Simplified control procedures may be warranted for short duration work. A reduction in the number of devices may be offset by the use of other more dominant devices such as high-intensity rotating, flashing, oscillating, or strobe lights on work vehicles. However, very short duration work is not defined in the MUTCD, but typically includes operations with stops that can be longer than normally anticipated under mobile operations and significantly shorter than one hour. Today I want to obtain information on current practices and lessons learned related to the selection of temporary traffic control methods for planned maintenance activities, specifically focusing on very short duration work zones. We’ll discuss: The types of work activities that your maintenance crews perform, How they set up TTC for those activities, The factors that are considered in that decision-making process, Agency policies and support documents, Innovations to reduce exposure and/or enhance visibility, Worker training, and Lessons learned.

A-2 Very Short Duration Work Zone Safety for Maintenance and Other Activities Question 1: Write the respondent(s) name and contact information below: First and Last Name ________________________________________________ Title/Position ________________________________________________ Agency/Organization Name ________________________________________________ Phone Number ________________________________________________ Email Address ________________________________________________ Question 2: On what types of roadways does your agency perform maintenance activities? Freeways Multi-Lane Highways (non-freeway) Two-Lane-Two-Way Roadways All roadway types Next, let’s talk about the specific work activities that your agency’s maintenance crews perform. Next page

Survey Questionnaire A-3 Question 3: Let’s go through a list and you can tell me which activities your crews perform. Work Activity Do crews perform this work? (Y/N) Does another part of your agency perform this work? (Y/N) Is this work contracted out? (Y/N) Crack Sealing Debris Removal Guardrail Work Lighting Maintenance Mowing/Brush Cutting Pothole Patching Pavement Testing* Pavement Marking Retroreflectivity Testing Sign Installation Sign Cleaning, Repair, or Replacement Signal Work Short Line Striping Traffic Counter Installation *Core sampling, falling weight deflectometer testing, ride quality, etc.

A-4 Very Short Duration Work Zone Safety for Maintenance and Other Activities Question 4: Does your agency use temporary traffic control strategies (standards or typical applications) other than those shown in the MUTCD Part 6 typical applications for performing very short duration work? (via their own MUTCD and does it ADD info regarding very short duration work?) Yes, and information is publicly available on our temporary traffic control strategies URL/Website: __________________________________________________________ Other Published Document (Title) ___________________________________________ Other (Please Specify) ____________________________________________________ Yes, but no information is publicly available on our temporary traffic control strategies No Question 5: Does your agency have any written policies, practices, or standards that address very short duration work zones? Yes, and information is publicly available on our written policies, practices, or standards URL/Website: __________________________________________________________ Other Published Document (Title) ___________________________________________ Other (Please Specify) ____________________________________________________ Yes, but no information is publicly available on our temporary traffic control strategies No Question 6: Does your agency have any unwritten practices that address very short duration work zones? Yes, and they can be described as: __________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ No

Survey Questionnaire A-5 Question 7: Has your agency have any policies, practices, or typical applications for very short duration work zones for specific work activities? Yes, and information is publicly available on our temporary traffic control strategies URL/Website: __________________________________________________________ Other Published Document (Title) ___________________________________________ Other (Please Specify) ____________________________________________________ Yes, but no information is publicly available on our temporary traffic control strategies No Question 8: Has your agency done away with any policies, practices, or typical applications for very short duration work zones? Yes, and this can be described as: __________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ No _________________________________________________________________________ No Question 9: What are the conditions that present the most difficulty when your agency staff is trying to select the most appropriate temporary traffic control setup for very short duration work activities? _________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ Question 10: Does your agency use any innovative equipment or technologies to reduce worker exposure during very short duration work activities? (e.g., using a mobile barrier on multi-lane roadways, requiring additional protection vehicles, worker assistance devices for placement & retrieval of TTC, intrusion alarms, etc.) Yes, and this can be described as: __________________________________________

A-6 Very Short Duration Work Zone Safety for Maintenance and Other Activities Question 11: Does your agency use any innovative equipment or technologies to increase worker or work operation visibility during very short duration work activities? (e.g., special lighting, worker apparel, larger vehicle size, extra vehicle lighting that is not used during other (mobile or short duration) work activities, extra signs or messages, etc.) Yes, and this can be described as: __________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ No Question 12: Has your agency ever experienced an accident or a near-miss involving a worker during a very short duration work operation? Yes, and this can be described as: (Please include the type of work being performed, type of TTC being used, roadway type (multi-lane or two-lane-two-way), worker actions, motorist actions, outcomes, etc. ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ No Question 13: Are very short duration work zones addressed in any of your worker training programs? Yes, and this can be described as: __________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ No Thank you for your time. The results will be synthesized in a state-of-the-practice document for very short duration work zone operations. If you have any questions, or can provide additional information, please contact me.

Next: Appendix B - List of Survey Respondents »
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TRB’s National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Synthesis 533 identifies the current state of practice among state departments of transportation (DOTs) regarding selection and setup of very short duration work zone (VSDWZ).

The report presents case examples of four state DOTs along with an in-depth analysis of the VSDWZ policies of these states. The case example agencies have developed specific guidance on the topic for their jurisdictions.

VSDWZ activities are those activities not defined in the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) under short duration work zone or temporary traffic control (TTC) zones. These activities are usually 1 to 20 minutes long and include maintenance activities (e.g., performing temporary patching, picking up debris, or placing traffic count tubes) where TTC is not set up.

VSDWZ activities reduce the exposure of workers to risk and the inconvenience to traffic that standard TTC zones would create. Current policies and practices in place at various agencies for VSDWZ activities vary substantially. The work-zone setup also varies by the type of maintenance or other very short duration activity and roadway classification (e.g., speed, AADT, and number of lanes). Historically, during those activities, a large number of worker fatalities have occurred.

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