Welcome to Road Weather Management
What's New
First National Workshop and Stakeholder Meeting on Weather Responsive Traffic Management - Summary and Presentations
The workshop was held in Portland, Oregon on October 6-7, 2011. Twenty-six (26) States and 2 Cities were represented in the meeting. Proceedings and Presentations are now available. A list of action items are also identified in the proceedings.
Developments in Weather-Responsive Traffic Management Strategies
This report (PDF 4.2MB) describes existing WRTM practices, the benefits realized and what improvements are needed. It also contains concepts of operations and high-level requirements for advanced WRTM strategies.
Weather Information Integration in Transportation Management Center (TMC) Operations
This report (PDF 6.5MB) describes the third phase of the FHWA study on weather integration in TMC. It summarizes the early phases of the study, and discusses the efforts of TMC's in Cheyenne, Colorado Springs, Kansas City, Louisiana, and Redding to identify their weather integration needs and develop plans to meet those needs.
Road Weather Bulletin
This material lists and summarizes various road weather management publications and training materials developed by FHWA through Spring of 2011.
MDSS Prototype Release 6.0 - Release 6.0 of MDSS prototype software, which contains many new or improved features. Registration for the software and supporting documentation is free.
Publications Now Available
- Weather Responsive Traffic Management - New Approaches to Improve Safety and Mobility (PDF 1.1MB)
- Road Weather Research Agenda (PDF 1.8MB)
- Microscopic Analysis of Traffic Flow in Inclement Weather - Part 2 (PDF 3.1MB)
- Traffic Analysis Toolbox Volume XI: Weather and Traffic Analysis, Modeling and Simulation
- Implementation and Evaluation of Sacramento Regional Traffic Management Center Weather Alert Notification System (PDF 3.5MB)
- Clarus Quality Checking Algorithm Documentation Report (PDF 215KB)
Additional Listing of Road Weather Management Program Publications
Adverse weather conditions have a major impact on the safety and operation of our Nation's roads, from signalized arterials to Interstate highways. Weather affects driver behavior, vehicle performance, pavement friction, and roadway infrastructure. Weather events and their impacts on roads can be viewed as predictable, non-recurring incidents that affect safety, mobility and productivity. Weather affects roadway safety through increased crash risk, as well as exposure to weather-related hazards. Weather impacts roadway mobility by increasing travel time delay, reducing traffic volumes and speeds, increasing speed variance (i.e., a measure of speed uniformity), and decreasing roadway capacity (i.e., maximum rate at which vehicles can travel). Weather events influence productivity by disrupting access to road networks, and increasing road operating and maintenance costs.
- How do weather events impact roads?
- What are the benefits of using road weather management strategies?
- What technologies are available to mitigate road weather impacts?
For additional information about the Road Weather Management Program, please visit the National Transportation Operations Coalition Web Cast Archive and select the September 30, 2008 - Road Weather Management web cast. Here you will find a recording and presentations about the program.
Clarus Initiative
The Clarus Initiative is a joint effort of the United States Department of Transportation Intelligent Transportation Systems Joint Program Office and the FHWA Road Weather Management Program. The Clarus Initiative is a six-year effort to develop and demonstrate an integrated surface transportation weather observation data management system, and to establish a partnership to create a Nationwide Surface Transportation Weather Observing and Forecasting System.
Web-Based Course/Training
- Road Weather Management Web-Based Courses - FHWA and the Consortium for ITS Training and Education have developed interactive web-based courses on the "Principles and Tools of Road Weather Management" and "RWIS Equipment and Operations".
- NWS Web-Based Training - FHWA and the Cooperative Program for Operational Meteorology, Education and Training have developed a web-based training course for road weather management staff to learn about National Weather Service products, forecasts and warnings.
Upcoming Events
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