Other Impacts Assessment and Management Examples and Resources
The examples on this page may not follow the process used in the FHWA Impacts Guide, but the methods and procedures used may be beneficial to other agencies.
Examples
AASHTO/FHWA Domestic Scan on Work Zone Assessment, Data Collection, and Performance Measurement (NCHRP 08-04)
Results of March 2010 scan looking at how 14 state agencies are planning for, monitoring, and managing work zone performance.
- Final Report (PDF 3.8MB) - Describes what was learned during the scan, a summary of the scan's key findings and recommendations, and the scan team's implementation strategy for national dissemination of this information to other transportation agencies.
- Summary Report (HTML, PDF 66KB) - Summarizes the scan findings, recommendations based on the findings, and potential ways to disseminate the scan results.
- Brochure (HTML, PDF 1.9MB) - Shares information on practices found during the scan and provides the key findings, challenges, and recommendations from the scan.
- Webinar Recording - Provides an overview of the findings and recommendations from the scan as well a presentation on some of the Ohio Department of Transportation's practices that were encountered during the scan.
Maryland State Highway Administration
The Maryland SHA (MdSHA) Work Zone Analysis Guide (PDF 19MB) provides guidance to designers and other staff on work zone traffic analysis methods. The guide has two sections: one focuses on arterials and the other focuses on freeways. Each section presents guidance and information on mobility thresholds, traffic analysis tools, determining the study network, data collection, traffic modeling, and the recommended analysis procedure. The analysis procedure MdSHA uses for both arterials and freeways is similar, beginning with determining the objective of the analysis, then collecting all necessary data, modeling existing conditions and alternatives, determining if the alternative meets mobility thresholds, and recommending an alternative. To help with the analysis, MdSHA developed several tools, including MD-QuickZone (a modified version of FHWA's QuickZone tool) and the Lane Closure Analysis Program (LCAP). After evaluating all feasible alternatives for work zone configurations and potential mitigation measures, MdSHA recommends that the results of the impacts analysis be summarized in a report, along with the justification for the alternative selected. The guide includes a template for the impacts analysis report, examples of analysis reports for several different types of projects, and a checklist to help ensure that the analysis is complete and has considered all necessary factors. The MdSHA Work Zone Safety and Mobility Web Site provides additional resources for implementing the Rule.
Minnesota Department of Transportation
The Minnesota DOT (Mn/DOT) developed a Work Zone Mobility Impact Assessment Decision Tree (PDF 82KB) to be used for all road projects to identify the potential impacts the project will have on mobility through the work zone and to provide guidelines for developing strategies to mitigate the impacts. To facilitate the use of the decision tree, Mn/DOT recommends that each district or local road authority develop and implement a general traffic delay restriction policy for their jurisdiction that includes restrictions by time of day, day of week, and seasonal/special events, and may specify allowed durations or exceptions. Mn/DOT also developed a work zone impact considerations worksheet (PDF 42KB) to use in conjunction with the decision tree to help identify project impacts and potential mitigation strategies. Both of these items are included in Minnesota's Work Zone Safety and Mobility Policy (PDF 219KB). The outcome of the decision tree is the documentation of the mitigation strategies in the appropriate level of Mn/DOT transportation management plan (TMP) for the project
New Jersey Department of Transportation
The New Jersey DOT (NJDOT) Traffic Mitigation Guidelines for Work Zone Safety and Mobility (PDF 1MB) presents guidance for consistent and comprehensive consideration of traffic mitigation strategies for roadway reconstruction projects implemented by NJDOT. The document lays out a process for integrating traffic mitigation into project development. Section 2 of this document describes a process to assess the level of traffic mitigation needed for a project and estimate order of magnitude costs for traffic mitigation. It provides an overview of the primary and secondary project characteristics or impacts that could influence the need for traffic mitigation and the extent and type of mitigation strategies chosen. NJDOT uses expected delay and road user cost as the main factors in determining the needed traffic mitigation level. The New Jersey DOT Road User Cost Manual describes work zone and traffic characteristics, explains possible work zone-related road user cost components, and provides a step-by-step procedure to determine road user costs.
To assess impacts, the NJDOT Division of Project Planning and Development acquires 24 hour weekday and weekend truck/car counts for the project area. The Designer uses this data to understand traffic impacts associated with various lane closure alternatives and evaluates the alternatives on a 24 hour basis to determine when there will be queues. In the absence of up-to-date traffic data or in addition to the quantitative impact analysis, traffic impacts can also be assessed qualitatively. The Traffic Mitigation Guidelines document includes sample worksheets that are used to quantitatively and qualitatively assess impacts. NJDOT uses the findings of the impacts assessment to determine if a project is low, moderate, or high impact. The classification then guides the selection of traffic mitigation strategies for the project.
Oregon Department of Transportation
The Oregon DOT (ODOT) has established a number of work zone traffic analysis and impacts assessment practices. This example describes two activities undertaken by ODOT related to work zone traffic analysis and impacts assessment.
Tennessee Department of Transportation
In July 2005, the Tennessee DOT (TDOT) began a complex project of upgrading a mostly elevated 2-mile section of Interstate 40 (I-40), which included widening sections and reconstructing several interchanges in downtown Knoxville. TDOT realized this project would have a major impact on traffic and the surrounding communities and recognized the need for a systematic approach to quantifying the potential effects of construction alternatives and identifying the most appropriate strategies for completing the project with minimal impact. The Fact Sheet: "Tennessee Analyzes Work Zone Impacts to Find a SmartFIX for I-40" (HTML, PDF 300KB) describes the impacts analysis undertaken for this project.
Resources
1/18/12 Webinar on Road User Cost Analysis for Work Zone Applications - Held on November 15, 2011
- Work Zone Impacts Assessment: An Approach to Assess and Manage Work Zone Safety and Mobility Impacts of Road Projects - Guidance on developing procedures to assess work zone impacts of road projects. Includes examples illustrating what agencies are currently doing in this area.
- Work Zone and Traffic Analysis - Resources for planning for a work zone project and analyzing potential impacts. Includes links to several work zone and traffic analysis software tools.
- Work Zone Traffic Management - Information and examples about work zone traffic management strategies that can be used during construction to minimize traffic delays, maintain or improve motorist and worker safety, complete roadwork in a timely manner, and maintain access for businesses and residents.
- Highway Construction Coordination to Minimize Traffic Impacts (PDF 1MB) - NCHRP report with examples of coordinated highway construction projects and recommendations for agencies interested in implementing enhanced construction coordination while maintaining reasonable levels of traffic flow.
- Synthesis of Procedures to Forecast and Monitor Work Zone Safety and Mobility Impacts - Information on what is being done by state transportation agencies to plan, manage, operate, and evaluate work zone safety and mobility.
- NCHRP Synthesis 413: Techniques for Effective Highway Construction Projects in Congested Urban Areas (PDF 5.1MB) - Identifies strategies and successful practices used by transportation agencies to deal effectively with the challenges and impacts of construction projects in congested urban corridors.
- Resources to Address Construction Noise - FHWA Web site that provides resources for addressing and mitigating the impacts of construction noise.
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