Synthesis Study: Effectiveness of Safety Corridor Programs, Report on Tasks 1-3, 2008

This report synthesizes the safety corridor programs of 13 states that currently have some type of program: Alaska, California, Florida, Kentucky, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Washington. This synthesis can help Midwestern states implement their own safety corridor programs and select pilot corridors or enhance existing corridors. Survey and interview information about the states’ programs was gathered from members of each state department of transportation (DOT) and Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) division office. Topics discussed included definitions of a safety corridor; length and number of corridors in the program; criteria for selection of a corridor; measures of effectiveness of an implemented safety corridor; organizational structure of the program; funding and legislation issues; and engineering, education, enforcement, and emergency medical service strategies. Safety corridor programs with successful results were then examined in more detail, and field visits were made to Kansas, Oregon, Pennsylvania, and Washington for first-hand observations. With the survey and field visit information, several characteristics of successful safety corridor programs were identified, including multidisciplinary (3E and 4E) efforts; selection, evaluation, and decommissioning strategies; organization structure, champions, and funding; task forces and Corridor Safety Action Plans; road safety audits; and legislation and other safety issues. Based on the synthesis, the report makes recommendations for establishing and maintaining a successful safety corridor program.

2 Iowa Safety Efforts: Analyst Tool & Location Aggregation Project, July 8, 2003

Report produced by the Iowa Department of Transportation about Iowa Safety with Tools and Aggregation.

Lane-Departure Safety Countermeasures: Strategic Action Plan for the Iowa Department of Transportation, 2011

Lane departure crashes are the single largest category of fatal and major injury crashes in Iowa. The Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT) estimates that 60 percent of roadway-related fatal crashes are lane departures and that 39 percent of Iowa’s fatal crashes are single-vehicle run-off-road (SVROR) crashes. Addressing roadway departure was identified as one of the top eight program strategies for the Iowa DOT in their Comprehensive Highway Safety Plan (CHSP). The goal is to reduce lane departure crashes and their consequences through lane departure-related design standards and policies including paved shoulders, centerline and shoulder rumble strips, pavement markings, signs, and median barriers. Lane-Departure Safety Countermeasures: Strategic Action Plan for the Iowa Department of Transportation outlines roadway countermeasures that can be used to address lane departure crashes. This guidance report was prepared by the Institute for Transportation (InTrans) at Iowa State University for the Iowa DOT. The content reflects input from and multiple reviews by both a technical advisory committee and other knowledgeable individuals with the Iowa DOT.