Sponsored by ASCE Continuing Education and ASCE's Transportation and Development Institute.

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Purpose and Background 

Typically, road safety is managed reactively. Engineers and other officials investigate crash locations on the assumption that future crashes are most likely to occur in those same locations. However, road crashes, in particular those on low volume urban or rural roads, are frequently distributed in seemingly random patterns and may not accurately correlate to roadway deficiencies. Rather than reacting to historic crash data, identifying specific systemic road deficiencies offers a proactive alternative to improving roadway safety. Roadway signing is one of the easiest and most cost effective ways to quantify, analyze and correct signing deficiencies to improve roadway safety.

This webinar discusses various methods of reactive vs. proactive roadway safety improvements, how to use innovative technology in the data collection phases, and what funding options there are from the federal government.

In response to this unique challenge, the County of Nevada (California) prepared a comprehensive state of the art Roadway Safety Signing Audit (RSSA) along 50 miles of corridors that provide vital access and connectivity throughout the western portion of the county. These corridors also experience higher-than-average collision rates. The RSSA evaluated deficiencies in critical corridors and generated the necessary information to proceed with a signage replacement and installation construction project. This proactive approach to traffic safety is expected to prevent fatalities and injury collisions with low-cost regulatory, warning, and guide signage improvements.

In addition to being a uniquely proactive collision prevention program, the RSSA also used groundbreaking data collection methodologies that reduced overall costs and provided quality, usable data that can be repurposed for other future uses. In particular, the RSSA utilized a state-of-the art integrated data collection platform that included the use of mobile LiDAR, electronic GIS based ball bank equipment, 360-degree photogrammetry, and mobile sign retroreflectivity data collection. This process dramatically reduced the amount of field time and established a thorough inventory that can be utilized on other future projects. 

Primary Discussion Topics

• Reactive versus proactive roadway safety improvements
• The limits of proactive roadway safety improvements
• The evaluation criteria used in the corridor evaluation process
• The use of innovative technology in the data collection phases - pros and cons
• Federal funding opportunities
• Findings from the RSSA process
• Lessons learns during the environmental documentation phase
• Successfully bidding and constructing the project
• Other lessons learned

Learning Outcomes

• Become familiar with the latest technologies available in the RSSA process
• How to identify and analyze corridors for a possible RSSA project
• Other potential uses for data collected in the RSSA
• Identify potential funding sources for RSSA project implementation

Webinar Benefits

• Learn the latest 'state of the practice' and proactive low cost roadway safety projects
• Learn about innovative technologies utilized for the RSSA process
• Learn about funding opportunities available for RSSA projects

Intended Audience

• Transportation and civil engineers
• Transportation planners
• Public works and road maintenance officials
• Government officials

Webinar Outline

• Discussion on reactive versus proactive roadway safety projects
• The search for low cost proactive roadway safety projects
• Award of federal funding for a RSSA project
• The request for qualification process and consultant selection
• Innovative data collection used during the process
• Criteria used in the RSSA
• RSSA recommendations and conclusions
• Environmental documentation
• The development of a PS&E package and project delivery
• Lessons learned
• Questions

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