Effectiveness of Speed Control Measures on Nighttime Construction and Maintenance Projects
Publication: Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Volume 135, Issue 7
Abstract
Nighttime work-zone safety has become a concern among state transportation agencies due to an increasing number of work-zone fatalities and the high percentage of roadwork performed at night. Speed control has been determined by numerous researchers to be one of the best ways to improve safety on nighttime work zones. This paper presents an empirical analysis of speed-control strategies for nighttime interstate construction and maintenance projects in Indiana. The analysis considers the effect of various speed-control measures on the mean speed and the standard deviation of speed through nighttime work zones. Using a seemingly unrelated regression modeling approach, the present analysis revealed that the presence of police enforcement, a high percentage of semitrucks in the traffic stream, and a high traffic flow significantly reduced mean work-zone speeds. Factors found to significantly increase mean work-zone speeds included an increase in the number of open lanes, an original speed limit of the road section greater than 100 km/h (62 mi/h) an increase in the distance between the work-zone speed-limit signs and the first cone/barrel in the construction zone taper, and the progression of time through the night. The standard deviation of vehicle speeds was found to be significantly lower before midnight and as the number of vehicles queued increased. It was found to be significantly higher with an increase in the number of open lanes through the work zone, an increase in the number of worksite speed-limit signs, a high percentage of personal vehicles in the traffic, and an increase in total traffic flow. The results from this research demonstrate a useful analysis methodology (seemingly unrelated regression estimation) and provide some empirical results that can provide guidance for transportation agencies and contractors to improve speed-control strategies in nighttime work zones.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
Acknowledgments
The writers would like to express their sincere appreciation to the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) personnel, Indiana contractors, and the Indiana Local Technical Assistance Program (LTAP). Their time and interest during data collection provided for a more complete analysis. The writers were supported by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Grant No. 1 R01 0H07553-02 and the Indiana Department of Transportation/Joint Transportation Research Program (JTRP) Project—SPR 2987. The contents of this paper reflect the views of the writers, who are responsible for the facts and the accuracy of the data presented herein. The contents do not necessary reflect the official views or policies of the NIOSH or the Federal Highway Administration and the Indiana Department of Transportation, nor do the contents constitute a standard, specification, or regulation.
References
Al-Kaisy, A., and Nassar, K. (2003). “Nighttime construction issues revisited.” Proc., 82nd Annual Transportation Research Board Meeting, Transportation Research Board, Washington, D.C.
Benekohal, R. F., Resende, P. T. V., and Zhao, W. (1992). “Speed reduction effects of drone radar in rural interstate work zones.” Rep. No. FHWA-IL-238, Univ. of Illinois, Urbana, Ill.
Boyle, L., and Mannering, F. (2004). “Impact of traveler advisory systems on driving speed: Some new evidence.” Transp. Res., Part C: Emerg. Technol., 12(1), 57–72.
Burgess, B., Jennings, K., and Abraham, D. M. (2007). “Traffic control safety issues in nighttime construction operations: Safety perception and practice.” Construct. Inf. Q., 9(3), 132–139.
Cottrell, B. H. (1999). “Improving night work zone traffic control.” Final Rep. No. FHWA/VTRC 00-R8, Virginia Transportation Research Council, Charlottesville, Va.
Elrahman, O. A., and Perry, R. J. (1998). “Guidelines for nighttime maintenance and construction operations.” Road Transport Res., 7(3), 3–16.
Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). (2007). “Work zone safety facts and statistics.” ⟨http://safety.fhwa.dot.gov/wz/wz_facts.htm⟩ (June 11, 2007).
Garber, N. J., and Gadiraju, R. (1989). “Factors affecting speed variance and its influence on accidents.” Transportation Research Record. 1283, Transporation Rescarch Board, Washington, D.C., 64–71.
Hinze, J. W., and Carlisle, D. (1990). “An evaluation of the important variables in nighttime construction.” Transportation Northwest (TransNow), Univ. of Washington, Seattle.
Lave, C. (1985). “Speeding, coordination, and the 55 mph limit.” Am. Econ. Rev. 75(5), 1159–1164.
Mannering, F. (2007). “Effects of interstate speed limits on driving speeds: Some new evidence.” Transportation Research Board 86th Annual Meeting (CD-ROM), Paper No. 07-0120, Transporation Research Board, Washington, D.C.
Miller, L. (2007). “Effectiveness of speed control measures on nighttime construction and maintenance projects.” MSCE thesis, Purdue Univ., West Lafayette, Ind.
National Work Zone Safety Information Clearinghouse. (2006). Fatalities in motor vehicle traffic crashes by state and construction/maintenance zone, American Road & Transportation Builders Association Transportation Development Foundation, the Federal Highway Administration, and the Texas Transportation Institute, ⟨http://www.workzonesafety.org⟩.
Noel, E. C., Dudek, C. L., Pendleton, O. J., and Sabra, Z. A. (1988). “Speed control through freeway work zones: Techniques evaluation.” Transportation Research Record. 1163, Transporation Research Board, Washington, D.C. 33–42.
Rebholz, F. E., et al. (2004). “Nighttime construction: Evaluation of construction operations.” ITRC FR 00/01-5, Illinois Transportation Research Center, Edwardsville, Ill.
Washington, S., Karlaftis, M., and Mannering, F. (2003). Statistical and econometric methods for transportation data analysis, Chapman & Hall/CRC, Boca Raton, Fla.
Zellner, A. (1962). “An efficient method of estimating seemingly unrelated regressions and tests for aggregation bias.” J. Am. Stat. Assoc., 57(298), 348–368.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Volume 135 • Issue 7 • July 2009
Pages: 614 - 619
Copyright
© 2009 ASCE.
History
Received: Jun 27, 2008
Accepted: Nov 11, 2008
Published online: Jun 15, 2009
Published in print: Jul 2009
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.