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NCHRP Project 17-35: Evaluation of Safety Strategies at Signalized Intersections

 

 

Evaluations of Low Cost Safety Improvements Pooled Fund Study (ELCSI–PFS)

 

NEWS

  • Phase VIII is to be determined by Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) members at the Ninth Annual Technical Advisory Committee Meeting, May 2013.

  • Phase VII started in November 2012. This phase is a retrospective study.

  • Phase VI – Evaluation of Pavement Safety Performance – is active and expected to be completed in February 2014. This is a retrospective study. High Friction Surface Treatments (HFST) will be evaluated as part of this study. 

  • Phase V – Part I was completed in December 2012. This is a prospective (build-to-evaluate) phase, and six volunteer States of IL, KY, MO, PA, SC, and WI have built four strategies. The “before” studies and study designs are completed for this study’s part I. Currently, this phase is in the data collection period; the “after” study will start in 2015.  

  • Phase III – Part I was completed in December 2011. This is a prospective phase, and six volunteer States (FL, IA, KS, KY, MO, and PA) have built six strategies. The “before” studies and study designs are complete. This phase is currently in the data collection period; the “after” study will start in 2014.

Objective: The goal of this research is to develop reliable estimates of the effectiveness of the safety improvements identified as strategies in the National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Report 500 Guides. These estimates are determined by conducting scientifically rigorous before-and-after evaluations at sites in the United States where these strategies are being implemented.

Scope of Work: The scope of the ELCSI–PFS is to conduct a research project of the priority strategies in the NCHRP Report 500 Guides. Originally a target of 20 strategies totaling $4.38 million over 5 years was planned for ELCSI–PFS studies in four phases. Currently, this study has outperformed its original goals, and has added three extra phases for a total of seven phases. The original budget of $4.38 million remains the same. To provide much needed reliable measures for effectiveness of various low-cost safety improvements, this study's performance period has been extended beyond 2017.

Resources: The data for this study will be gathered from States that either have already implemented the selected strategies or will implement the strategies over the course of a few years. The greater the number of States implementing the strategies, the faster the rate of "after" data collection, which shortens the total time required for each evaluation.

Methodology: The methodology used will typically be an Empirical Bayes evaluation, using before-and-after data to determine the effectiveness of the selected strategies in reducing the number and severity of crashes. The implementation of the strategies and the evalu ations will be staggered, grouping a small number of the evaluations together, as appropriate.

The image shows a map of the participating States. The States include Arizona, California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, New York, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Wisconsin.

Participating States in the ELCSI–PFS.

Participating States: AZ, CA, CT, FL, GA, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, MA, MD, MN, MO, MS, MT, NC, ND, NY, OK, PA, SC, SD, TN, TX, UT, VA and WI.

Strategy Selections: Currently, the ELCSI–PFS has seven phases (I–VII). Strategies for all phases are selected through balloting conducted at the annual Technical Activity Committee (TAC) meetings.

Results and Applications: The goal of the ELCSI–PFS is to provide a Crash Modification Factor (CMF) and benefit/cost (BC) economic analysis for each of the targeted safety strategies. The CMFs and the economic analyses will be used by the Department of Transportation (DOT) to plan for the implementation of these safety improvements. Our goal is to learn and improve our processes to assist in the field implementation of these safety strategies. The degree of success in the evaluation of each strategy will vary depending on the level of DOT support and the availability and reliability of the collected data.

The final result of the ELCSI–PFS will be published by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), and also will serve as a resource for the Highway Safety Manual (HSM) and other technical publications.

Dissemination of Results: Please see the Publications and Other Resources links.

For more information contact:
Roya Amjadi, Research Highway Safety Specialist
Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)
Office of Safety Research and Development
6300 Georgetown Pike, McLean, VA 22101
Phone: 202–493–3383, Fax: 202–493–3374
Email: roya.amjadi@dot.gov