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Best Traffic Device in Construction Zones
In making an attempt to decide which might be the most effective way to slow down traffic moving thru work areas, the Texas Transportation Institute tested many strategies, including driver feedback signs. While the signs stood above the rest so far as percentage of traffic slowed and the best average drops in speed, it might be interesting to see how they performed matched against one other popular system of traffic control: rumble strips.
The difficulty with these strips in work construction sectors is that the sections move as construction advances. Rumble strips are typically permanent features, like speed bumps. So removable rumble strips are required in construction areas. These need to be put down and pulled up regularly. While construction personnel said that removing them was easy, putting them down took far too much time away from their assigned work. Speed signs, however, were simple and quick to get set up.
Matched against the 40 minutes or so it took the three construction workers to install non-permanent rumble strips along the area of road where they wanted to slow traffic, setting up the driver feedback signs took no time. The signs only had to be placed on the back of transportable trailers and put where they wanted them. The strips had to have the sticky backing revealed by peeling off the paper, then they had to be applied to the roadway. Six strips were installed parallel to each other to make a patch of texture designed to alert drivers to the road and their speed.
Pulling up the strips only took about 10 minutes or thereabouts, but with nearly three-quarters of an hour taken for a group of three to put them down, they're not efficient to use. And the speed reductions they caused were lacking when compared to the driver feedback signs. The drop in number of speeders never got above 2.8% with the rumble strips, with the average speed reduction tapping out at 1.6 miles per hour.
The feedback signs, though, averaged a 5.2 mph reduction among both cars and trucks, and actually reduced the quantity of speeders from 4.4% to 15.7% during the day. Speed display signs were the definite winner for reducing overall speed of traffic and reducing dangerous speeding through work zones.
The difficulty with these strips in work construction sectors is that the sections move as construction advances. Rumble strips are typically permanent features, like speed bumps. So removable rumble strips are required in construction areas. These need to be put down and pulled up regularly. While construction personnel said that removing them was easy, putting them down took far too much time away from their assigned work. Speed signs, however, were simple and quick to get set up.
Matched against the 40 minutes or so it took the three construction workers to install non-permanent rumble strips along the area of road where they wanted to slow traffic, setting up the driver feedback signs took no time. The signs only had to be placed on the back of transportable trailers and put where they wanted them. The strips had to have the sticky backing revealed by peeling off the paper, then they had to be applied to the roadway. Six strips were installed parallel to each other to make a patch of texture designed to alert drivers to the road and their speed.
Pulling up the strips only took about 10 minutes or thereabouts, but with nearly three-quarters of an hour taken for a group of three to put them down, they're not efficient to use. And the speed reductions they caused were lacking when compared to the driver feedback signs. The drop in number of speeders never got above 2.8% with the rumble strips, with the average speed reduction tapping out at 1.6 miles per hour.
The feedback signs, though, averaged a 5.2 mph reduction among both cars and trucks, and actually reduced the quantity of speeders from 4.4% to 15.7% during the day. Speed display signs were the definite winner for reducing overall speed of traffic and reducing dangerous speeding through work zones.
About the Author:
A feedback sign is the overall best way of slowing work zone traffic, working better than police radar, rumble strips and other techniques. Get more information from Trafficalm at trafficalmsystems.com today.