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G-1 Examples of STA Guidelines with Safety Implications A P P E N D I X G 1. GEORGIA DOT 2. NEW JERSEY DOT 3. WASHINGTON STATE DOT
G-2 Utility Pole Safety and Hazard Evaluation Approaches
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G-4 Utility Pole Safety and Hazard Evaluation Approaches
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G-6 Utility Pole Safety and Hazard Evaluation Approaches
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G-8 Utility Pole Safety and Hazard Evaluation Approaches
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G-10 Utility Pole Safety and Hazard Evaluation Approaches NEW JERSEY ADMINISTRATIVE CODE TITLE 16. TRANSPORTATION CHAPTER 25. UTILITY ACCOMMODATION (Expires on February 1, 2023) SUBCHAPTER 10, OVERHEAD POWER AND COMMUNICATION LINES 16:25-10.1 General provisions (a) Ground-mounted utility facilities shall be placed as far as practical from the traveled way and as near as practical to the right-of-way line and are restricted in certain locations as follows: 1. No above ground facilities shall be located within grade separated interchange areas of limited access highways. 2. No aerial crossing of limited access highway right-of-way shall be permitted with the exception of electrical facilities operating at a potential of 26 KV or above. (b) When replacing an existing pole, the utility shall remove the existing pole within 90 calendar days following installation of the new pole. (c) For Department projects, upon approval of the Utility Owner Design Authorization, the Department will consider acquiring pole guy property rights at critical locations if the utility has identified proposed guy easement locations in advance, so as not to interfere with the project's right-of-way acquisition schedule. 16:25-10.2 Installation standards (a) Installation of overhead lines on highway right-of-way shall be limited to single wooden pole type of construction unless a waiver is approved by the Department pursuant to N.J.A.C. 16:25-13.3. (b) Use of non-wooden poles requires Department approval of a waiver, pursuant to N.J.A.C. 16:25-13.3. (c) Installation of non-wooden poles approved by the Department pursuant to a waiver shall comply with the provisions of this chapter. (d) At locations where more than one utility or type of facility is involved, every effort should be made to limit utility poles to one side of the highway with joint usage, as indicated by Rule 222
Examples of STA Guidelines with Safety Implications G-11 of the National Electrical Safety Code. This is of particular significance at locations where the right-of-way widths approach the minimum needed for safe operation or maintenance requirements or where separate installations may require extensive removal or alteration of trees. (e) Utility pole delineators are reflective markers placed on utility poles that provide the driver of a vehicle with the alignment of the roadway and the location of the pole by their reflection of the car's lights during nighttime hours of sunset to sunrise. Utility pole delineators shall be placed on relocated poles and poles involving new utility installation at locations vulnerable to vehicular impact, such as islands, gore areas, outside of horizontal curves, and critical locations described in N.J.A.C. 16:25-10.3(d) and (o). Existing utility poles with a history of multiple vehicular hits shall be furnished with delineators as part of the maintenance or replacement process.
G-12 Utility Pole Safety and Hazard Evaluation Approaches (f) Utility companies shall be responsible to meet the Department's standard highway lighting power source requirements. For utility company owned lighting designated to provide lighting for the State highway, the utility companies shall be responsible to meet the Department's standard highway lighting requirements by furnishing, installing, and maintaining highway lighting fixtures approved by the Department with appropriate power supplies. All highway lighting requirements shall be developed in consultation with the utility. Standard lighting on new utility pole installations shall be installed in a reserved area at a pole height of approximately 26 feet. (g) Pole attached utility components including, but not limited to, solar panels, antennas, and cameras, shall be positioned within the designated zone for the respective utility. 16:25-10.3 Location and alignment (a) Utility poles shall be located as close to the right-of-way as practical, preferably no further than five feet from the right-of-way line as allowed by cross-arm aerial clearance requirements. Aerial easements shall be considered to accommodate cross-arms to achieve the desired pole offsets. (b) Location of overhead utilities on highways with narrow right-of-way or on urban streets with closely abutting improvements requires special consideration. Utility poles shall be located behind the sidewalk, as far as practical from the curb or gutter line. When this is not feasible, poles may be placed between the sidewalk and the curb or gutter line, as close to the sidewalk as possible. If site constraints require utility poles to be placed within the sidewalk area, they shall be located in compliance with the Department's Roadway Design Manual by maintaining the minimum useable width of sidewalk to allow for wheelchair passage. In no case shall the face of the utility poles be located closer than 1.5 feet from the face of the curb or the gutter line. (c) The distance between utility poles should be the longest feasible span length consistent with geometric and design line loading considerations. (d) In areas where advisory speed, speed reduction, and/or horizontal alignment warning signs are posted in advance of highway curves, consideration shall be given to relocating the poles to the inside of the curve, installing the facility underground, or some other cost effective alternative, which avoids the placement of poles on the out- side of the curve. Should pole placement be required along the outside of the horizontal curve, the number of poles shall be held to a minimum and pole offsets shall be increased to the maximum allowable given the site constraints. (e) Where a guide rail is present, utility poles shall be located in accordance with the Department's Roadway Design Manual. (f) Utility poles shall be located longitudinally at least 50 feet beyond an exit terminal or gore/island approach end. Placement of poles in islands that do not have a longitudinal through
Examples of STA Guidelines with Safety Implications G-13 roadway length of 100 feet or more is discouraged, except where other locations are unusually difficult and unreasonably costly. (g) Poles being installed in proximity to a bridge structure shall maintain a minimum offset distance equal to or greater than the exposed height of the pole. (h) Guy wires to ground anchors and stub poles shall not be placed between a pole and the traveled way where they encroach upon the clear zone area. Push brace poles shall not be placed between the utility pole and the traveled way. (i) Where irregular shaped portions of the right-of-way extend beyond the parallel right- of-way limits, variances in the location from the right-of-way line may be al- lowed, as necessary, to maintain a reasonably uniform alignment for longitudinal overhead installations. (j) Poles, guys, or other related facilities shall not be located in a highway median unless other alternatives are determined to be impractical and where suitable protection is provided to the highway user. (k) At locations where a traffic signal standard, traffic signal standard mounted lighting assembly, separate lighting standard, or overhead sign structures exists, the installation shall conform to the provisions of N.J.A.C. 16:25-10.4. (l) When electrical facilities (26 KV and above) are approved for installation across limited access highway right-of-way in accordance with N.J.A.C. 16:25-12, they shall be installed in accordance with the criteria set forth in this chapter; however, the proximity criteria used shall take into account not only existing highway facilities such as light standards and sign supports, but also facilities that the Department proposes within the area where the utility crossing will be constructed. (m) To the greatest extent possible, utility poles should be located longitudinally along the roadway. Aerial crossings over roadways should be minimized and longitudinal aerial spans over roadways should be avoided. (n) Placement of utility poles, guys, or other utility related facilities within intersection corner quadrants should be avoided. If utility poles are required at an intersection, pole placement should be designed to avoid the most crash vulnerable locations involving potential secondary collisions (collision of a vehicle with a pole resulting from an initial two vehicle collision). (o) The placement of poles shall be avoided at critical locations, such as lane drops, deceleration lanes, "T" intersections, and sections where the pavement narrows. If it is impractical to span these areas, the Department may approve locating the pole in the area least vulnerable to vehicular impact.
G-14 Utility Pole Safety and Hazard Evaluation Approaches (a) The minimum clearances for overhead power and communication lines shall in no case be less than the standards prescribed by the National Electrical Safety Code (NESC). (b) When rebuilding an existing pole line or constructing a new pole line at locations where there are no traffic signal standards, lighting standards, or overhead sign structures, poles of not less than 40 feet in overall length shall be installed and the attached primary line, at its lowest point, shall have a minimum clearance of 30 feet from the ground. (c) At locations where the Department has identified a future need to install new or upgraded traffic signal standards, lighting standards, or sign structures, poles of not less than 50 feet in overall length shall be installed. (d) The minimum clearances between overhead power lines and highway traffic signals, traffic signal pole mounted lighting arms, cameras, antennas, other appurtenances, or lighting standards shall be determined as follows. Voltages are measured phase to ground. Minimum Clearances Power Line Voltages Lateral Vertical 0-750 volts NESC NESC 750 volts-50 KV NESC or 10 feet, NESC or 10 feet, whichever is greater whichever is greater Above 50 KV NESC or 10 feet, plus NESC or 10 feet, plus 0.4 inches per kilovolt 0.4 inches per kilovolt 16:25-10.4 Clearance requirements
Examples of STA Guidelines with Safety Implications G-15 WASHINGTON STATE GUIDELINES
G-16 Utility Pole Safety and Hazard Evaluation Approaches
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G-18 Utility Pole Safety and Hazard Evaluation Approaches
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G-20 Utility Pole Safety and Hazard Evaluation Approaches
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G-22 Utility Pole Safety and Hazard Evaluation Approaches
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G-24 Utility Pole Safety and Hazard Evaluation Approaches
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G-26 Utility Pole Safety and Hazard Evaluation Approaches
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G-28 Utility Pole Safety and Hazard Evaluation Approaches
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G-30 Utility Pole Safety and Hazard Evaluation Approaches
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G-32 Utility Pole Safety and Hazard Evaluation Approaches
Abbreviations and acronyms used without definitions in TRB publications: A4A Airlines for America AAAE American Association of Airport Executives AASHO American Association of State Highway Officials AASHTO American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials ACIâNA Airports Council InternationalâNorth America ACRP Airport Cooperative Research Program ADA Americans with Disabilities Act APTA American Public Transportation Association ASCE American Society of Civil Engineers ASME American Society of Mechanical Engineers ASTM American Society for Testing and Materials ATA American Trucking Associations CTAA Community Transportation Association of America CTBSSP Commercial Truck and Bus Safety Synthesis Program DHS Department of Homeland Security DOE Department of Energy EPA Environmental Protection Agency FAA Federal Aviation Administration FAST Fixing Americaâs Surface Transportation Act (2015) FHWA Federal Highway Administration FMCSA Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration FRA Federal Railroad Administration FTA Federal Transit Administration HMCRP Hazardous Materials Cooperative Research Program IEEE Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers ISTEA Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 ITE Institute of Transportation Engineers MAP-21 Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (2012) NASA National Aeronautics and Space Administration NASAO National Association of State Aviation Officials NCFRP National Cooperative Freight Research Program NCHRP National Cooperative Highway Research Program NHTSA National Highway Traffic Safety Administration NTSB National Transportation Safety Board PHMSA Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration RITA Research and Innovative Technology Administration SAE Society of Automotive Engineers SAFETEA-LU Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (2005) TCRP Transit Cooperative Research Program TDC Transit Development Corporation TEA-21 Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (1998) TRB Transportation Research Board TSA Transportation Security Administration U.S. DOT United States Department of Transportation
U tility Pole Safety and H azard Evaluation A pproaches N CH RP Synthesis 557 TRB TRA N SPO RTATIO N RESEA RCH BO A RD 500 Fifth Street, N W W ashington, D C 20001 A D D RESS SERV ICE REQ U ESTED N O N -PR O FIT O R G . U .S. PO STA G E PA ID C O LU M B IA , M D PER M IT N O . 88 ISBN 978-0-309-48174-8 9 7 8 0 3 0 9 4 8 1 7 4 8 9 0 0 0 0
