September 3, 2015
Innovation of the Month: Data-Driven Safety Analysis
The Every Day Counts innovation of the month for September is data-driven safety analysis. The Federal Highway Administration is encouraging broader use of two approaches to analysis–predictive and systemic–to better target highway safety investments and reduce crashes.
Predictive approaches combine crash, roadway inventory and traffic volume data to provide more reliable estimates of an existing or proposed road’s expected safety performance, such as crash frequency and severity. Results of the analysis can be used in roadway safety management and project development decisions and safety countermeasure selection.
Systemic approaches screen a road network for high-risk features associated with severe crashes, such as certain types of horizontal curves, and identify low-cost safety treatments. These techniques are helpful when crashes occur over a wide area, such as on rural and local roads, and for specific crash types, such as those involving vulnerable road users.
Learn more about data-driven safety analysis:
- Register for the Selecting the Right Systemic Safety Treatments webinar from 1 to 3 p.m. ET on September 29.
- View the Data-Driven Safety Analysis presentation on predictive and systemic approaches.
- See the EDC Exchange: Data-Driven Safety Analysis webcast for details on how agencies are integrating safety performance into highway investment decisions.
Read About EDC-3 Progress
A new electronic publication–EDC 3 Progress Report #1–summarizes the June 2015 deployment status of the 11 innovations in the third round of the Every Day Counts initiative. Read how transportation stakeholders are collaborating in states across the country to implement the EDC-3 innovations in 2015 and 2016.
Safety Focus of Arizona Innovation Exchange
The Arizona Council for Transportation Innovation presented its second Innovation Exchange of the year at the Arizona League of Cities and Towns Annual Conference in Tucson on August 19. The exchange shared innovative technologies to improve the safety and efficiency of the transportation system. Topics included bicycle and pedestrian safety on congested urban streets, using Wi-Fi to measure border wait times and active traffic management using adaptive signal control technology, integrated corridor management and variable speed limits. About 50 people attended the event and another 20 participated by webcast.
GRS-IBS Bridge Opens in Arizona
August 21 marked the grand opening of the new Dennehotso Bridge over Laguna Creek in Apache County, Arizona. Crews on the Federal Lands Highway project used geosynthetic reinforced soil-integrated bridge system technology to replace the bridge, which is on a route that serves as a local access road for the Dennehotso Navajo Chapter. The new bridge will enable the narrow stream channel to be widened, resulting in fewer flooding events.
New York Tribal Projects Dedicated
The Arizona Council for Transportation Innovation presented its second Innovation Exchange of the year at the Arizona League of Cities and Towns Annual Conference in Tucson on August 19. The exchange shared innovative technologies to improve the safety and efficiency of the transportation system. Topics included bicycle and pedestrian safety on congested urban streets, using Wi-Fi to measure border wait times and active traffic management using adaptive signal control technology, integrated corridor management and variable speed limits. About 50 people attended the event and another 20 participated by webcast.
Washington Floating Bridge Reaches New Milestone
Crews completed installation of the low-rise roadway deck for the new State Route 520 floating bridge on Lake Washington on August 24. The Washington State Department of Transportation is using the design-build delivery method for the project. The setting of the final 100-ton deck section came less than a year after crews set the first low-rise section in September 2014. The bridge from Seattle to Medina is scheduled to open to traffic in spring 2016.
See the Latest Innovator
Read the new issue of Innovator to find out how New Mexico and other states used State Transportation Innovation Council incentive funds on activities to standardize innovations. Also, read about the latest round of Accelerated Innovation Deployment Demonstration awards highway agencies will use to deploy proven technologies and practices to save time, money and lives.