Work Zone Mobility and Safety Program
Photo collage: temporary lane closure, road marking installation, cone with mounted warning light, and drum separated work zones.
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Best Practice

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BEST PRACTICE:

I1-5: Automated Speed Enforcement Programs

DESCRIPTION:

Automated Speed Enforcement (ASE) systems—consisting of speed-activated photo radar devices—are used to enhance enforcement of speed limits. ASE systems typically include advisory signage that is placed well before the speed camera installation, indicates that ASE systems are in use, specifies the posted speed limit in effect through the work zone, and displays speed feedback informing drivers of their measured speed as they approach the enforcement area. Drivers who exceed the posted speed limit by a certain amount are then issued citations in the mail. Temporary ASE systems in work zones function similarly to permanent ASE systems that jurisdictions often install near schools or roads with high crash or fatality rates. Important differences include the permanence of the equipment and, in most cases, the requirement that vehicle mounted work zone ASE systems be continuously manned during operation.
ASE programs that extend the use of ASE systems in work zones throughout a jurisdiction further enhance the benefits of ASE systems, further increasing driver awareness, driver compliance, and safety for both drivers and workers. An illustrative example of an ASE program is the Maryland SafeZones ASE program. The program was piloted from October 2009 to spring 2010 through a collaboration among the Maryland State Highway Administration, the Maryland Transportation Authority, and the Maryland State Police. The long-term program began July 2010. Maryland SafeZones mobile enforcement vehicles rotate among eligible work zones throughout the State. The program issues warnings to violators for the first three weeks of long-term work zones and after that begins issuing citations. For short-term work zones, warnings are not issued but advisory signage is implemented three weeks in advance to notify drivers of the incoming ASE set-up. In Maryland, ASE systems in work zones fine drivers exceeding the speed limit by 12 miles per hour (mph) or more in work zones along controlled access roadways with a 45 mph or higher speed limit; the fine is $40 with no points assessed against the violator’s license .

REASON(S) FOR ADOPTING:

Maryland found that four out of five crash-related injuries in work zones are suffered by motorists. An ASE program, therefore, was adopted to slow drivers down in work zones, making work zones safer for drivers, passengers, and workers. The implementation of a long-term ASE program also extends and enhances the benefits of using individual ASE systems in work zones on a more ad hoc basis.

PRIMARY BENEFIT(S):

Implementations of long-term ASE programs for work zones significantly increase compliance with posted speed limits and, in turn, increase safety for drivers, passengers, and workers by decreasing the number of work zone crash-related injuries and fatalities. In Maryland, the long-term deployment of the SafeZones ASE program has resulted in an 80 percent reduction in speeding violations, while work zone related crash injuries and fatalities are at their lowest in more than a decade .

MOST APPLICABLE LOCATION(S)/PROJECT(S):

ASE programs and systems are most applicable in long-term work zones on expressways or controlled access highways (speed limit of 45 mph or higher) in situations where workers are exposed or there are motorist hazards and where there are no significant obstructions to the line of sight for the speed camera.

STATE(S) WHERE USED:

Maryland

SOURCE/CONTACT(S):

Kayode Adenaiya, Office of Traffic and Safety, Maryland SHA
Phone: (410) 787-5864
E−mail: kadenaiya@sha.state.md.us
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