Current State of the Practice – Work Zone Self Assessment
One of the first presentations in the workshop was a presentation on the Work Zone Self Assessment, given by Tracy Scriba of FHWA.In 2003 and 2004 FHWA asked all states to complete a work zone self assessment. As a result of the work zone self assessment, FHWA has been able to assess the current state of the practice in developing and implementing work zone communication and outreach strategies. The assessment consisted of 46 questions grouped into 6 different areas and was intended to help States (working with the FHWA division offices) to look at their own programs and determine which areas they are doing well in and which areas have room for improvement. The assessment is also used to help FHWA monitor and assess, at a national level, the work zone issues that need to be addressed. FHWA plans to continue holding the assessment annually in order to allow states to see how they are advancing from year to year in their work zone practices.
The results of the 2004 self assessment showed that the Communication and Education section had the highest average score of 10.4 out of a possible 15, but the scores vary widely across all States. Although this section had the highest average score, it was chosen as the target of the focus state effort because many states noted in their comments that they are still faced with communication and outreach challenges and there is still work to be done in this area. Furthermore, the areas of the self assessment with lower average scores were often areas that had a much broader focus and in many cases, no easy solution. In addition, because this is the first attempt at the focus state effort, FHWA did not want to risk "biting off more than they could chew" and instead hoped to find success with this first effort and then perhaps duplicate the effort for some of the other self assessment areas in the future.
Within the Communication and Education section there were some interesting findings:
- All agencies reported use of a public information plan during type I, II, and III projects to provide specific, timely project information.
- Public information plans use a variety of dissemination techniques.
- 87% of State agencies use web sites as a resource for disseminating traveler information on work zones.
- 67% of State agencies indicated that they use Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) during type I, II, and III projects to collect and disseminate work zone information. However use is limited and is decided on a project-by-project basis; there are no statewide criteria to guide ITS use.
With regard to the use of web sites to provide work zone information, it was noted that some are project-specific and some are statewide. Many of the States noted in their comments the challenge that they face of keeping the sites up to date and accurate. Some reported that they update their web site daily with construction information, and even hourly when required by maintenance conditions, while other states reported weekly or even less frequent updates. Some states have either a central process for updating their web sites or it is done through regional and district offices, while in other States construction crews have the ability to update the site, making it much easier to keep the information timely. Regardless, it is important to note that information on a web site is meaningless unless it is both timely and accurate. Other challenges noted about web sites included:
- Often, websites are not easy to find/get to
- The Highway Department may have a web site but it does not contain work zone information
- It is difficult to determine how to best reach out of state travelers
The comments in the self assessment also indicated a number of common outreach and education strategies and distribution mechanisms used among States. These findings are illustrated in Table 2.
| Outreach/Education Strategies | Outreach/Education Distribution Mechanisms |
|---|---|
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