Best Practices for Road Weather Management Version 2.0

Title:

Roadway Conditions As Contributing Factors in 1998 Florida Traffic Crashes (Conference Paper)

Abstract:

One of the primary goals of the Florida DOT is to reduce the number and severity of crashes that occur on the State Highway System (SHS) each year, or that portion of Florida's roads under the Florida DOT's control. The Florida DOT's main goal is to keep the percentage of crashes on the SHS where roadway conditions are contributing factors below one percent through the year 2006. As defined by the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, roadway conditions include such factors as standing water; loose surface materials; holes, ruts, and unsafe paved edges; and worn or polished roadway surfaces, for example. The findings from the research indicated that the use of roadway conditions as a performance indicator is not warranted. The estimate of the number of 1998 crashes on the SHS where a roadway condition was shown to be a contributory factor to its occurrence was very low. Out of the final sample crashes, only a total of 204 crashes indicated a roadway condition that could be potentially correctable by a Florida DOT action. The net result was a total number of crashes that was so minimal that the determination of a significant problem cannot be made where corrective action by the Florida DOT could minimize or reduce the number of future crashes. Projecting the sample to all of the 1998 traffic crashes that occurred on the SHS in Florida, only 0.7 percent of could have potentially been influenced by Florida DOT corrective actions.

Source(s):

Mid-Continent Transportation Research Symposium, Center for Urban Transportation Research

https://trid.trb.org/view/665438

Date: 2003

Author:

Baltes, Chu

Keywords:

Safety
Pavement condition

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