Assessing and Managing Work Zone Impacts - Examples

The Work Zone Safety and Mobility Rule brings about a new focus on addressing work zone safety and mobility impacts. An important aspect of the Rule is that it advocates (1) systematic consideration of the broader safety and mobility impacts of work zones throughout a project's life cycle; and (2) development and implementation of appropriate management strategies to help manage these impacts.

Section 630.1008(b) of the Rule addresses impacts assessment and management. This provision encourages agencies to develop and implement procedures to assess work zone impacts in project development, and to manage safety and mobility during project implementation. The provision specifies that the scope of the work zone assessment and management procedures be based on the characteristics of projects. This aspect of the provision is intended to account for the variation that exists in project types and complexity. More information is provided in Work Zone Impacts Assessment: An Approach to Assess and Manage Work Zone Safety and Mobility Impacts of Road Projects.

Several states have already recognized the benefits of developing and implementing procedures for impacts assessment and management. While these states may not yet be fully compliant with the Rule, examples of what they are currently doing may help other states move toward Rule implementation. The following examples are meant to assist agencies with developing their own work zone impacts assessment processes and procedures. The examples provided are not the only way to develop and implement impacts assessment policies and procedures and are not meant to advocate a "one size fits all" approach. Additional examples will be added as they become available.

Impacts Assessment Examples Developed to Accompany FHWA Impacts Guide

FHWA has developed several examples to illustrate the general approach for work zone impacts assessment that is described in Work Zone Impacts Assessment: An Approach to Assess and Manage Work Zone Safety and Mobility Impacts of Road Projects. These examples cover several different project types and complexities.

Large Project: Virginia Department of Transportation I-495/U.S. Route 1 Interchange Reconstruction Project - This example discusses how work zone impacts assessment was conducted for the I-495/U.S. Route Interchange Reconstruction Project. This project is part of the overall Woodrow Wilson Bridge project.
Intermediate Project: California Department of Transportation, Fresno County, State Route 41 Capacity Improvement Project (Phase I) - This example discusses how work zone impacts assessment was conducted for the SR 41 Capacity Improvement Project, how decisions were made on what TMP strategies to include and implement, and what actions were taken by Caltrans to manage the impacts of the project during construction.
Basic/Minor Projects: North Carolina DOT SR 1728 (Middle Road) Bridge Replacement Project and Washington State DOT SR 112 Bear Creek Culvert Replacement Project - These two examples demonstrate how work zone impacts assessment was done for projects with relatively minor work zone impacts and complexity.

Example: Tennessee Department of Transportation

Fact Sheet: "Tennessee Analyzes Work Zone Impacts to Find a SmartFIX for I-40" (HTML, PDF 300KB)

Including Impacts Assessment and Management Strategies in Environmental Impacts Statements

Agencies are encouraged to begin assessing work zone impacts early in the project development process, which can mean including information about potential work zone impacts in a project's environmental impact statement (EIS). The following links provide examples of how several agencies have incorporated work zone impacts assessment and management into their Preliminary EIS (PEIS) and EIS reports.

I-70 Mountain Corridor PEIS Construction Traffic Impact Mitigation Strategies (Colorado) (PDF 1MB) - This report describes various work zone impacts management strategies that can be implemented individually and in combination with each other to reduce construction-related traffic impacts in the I-70 Mountain Corridor.
The New I-64 EIS (Missouri) - Pages 84 to 88 of Chapter 4 of this report describe potential traffic impacts that could occur during the reconstruction of I-64 and management strategies to address these impacts.
US 321 Improvements EIS (North Carolina) (PDF 689KB) - Pages 4-141 to 4-157 in Section 4 of this report describe potential construction impacts that could occur while improvements are made to US 321. The report lists various management strategies and discusses how these strategies could be applied to the various build alternatives.

Additional Impacts Assessment and Management Examples and Resources

Resources to Address Construction Noise - This FHWA web site provides resources for addressing and mitigating the impacts of construction noise. Resources on this site include the FHWA Highway Construction Noise Handbook and the FHWA Roadway Construction Noise Model (FHWA RCNM) Version 1.0. The handbook explores factors and issues that may be appropriate to consider in dealing with construction noise. The FHWA RCNM Version 1.0 is a free software tool for predicting construction noise from highway projects of varying complexity.
Synthesis of Procedures to Forecast and Monitor Work Zone Safety and Mobility Impacts (PDF 2MB) - This report provides a synthesis of what is being done by State transportation agencies (STAs) across the country to plan, manage, operate, and evaluate for work zone safety and mobility. The research for the synthesis had three steps: 1) Review the literature regarding work zone safety and mobility strategies; 2) Conduct interviews with staff members at 30 STAs; and 3) Develop case studies of three STAs.
Using Continuously Reinforced Concrete to Minimize Future Reconstruction and Repair Work - Article in September 2007 issue of Better Roads. Continuously Reinforced Concrete Pavement (CRCP) is a Portland cement concrete pavement that is expected to last an average of 30 to 40 years without needing repairs. It has been used less frequently than other pavements because of its high initial cost and longer installation time. Analysis done by the Illinois DOT (IDOT) found that in certain situations the higher initial costs can be significantly outweighed by the long term cost savings from fewer repairs and overlays, and the reduction in work zone-related traffic disruption. As a result, Illinois policymakers have mandated CRCP for highway projects that carry annual traffic volumes of 35-million equivalent single axle loads or more. IDOT sees CRCP as a way to reduce work zone impacts - to the agency in terms of cost, to drivers in terms of inconvenience and delays, and to the environment in terms of not having to deal with waste and debris from road work every five years.
Work Zone Impacts Assessment: An Approach to Assess and Manage Work Zone Safety and Mobility Impacts of Road Projects - This report provides guidance on developing procedures to assess work zone impacts of road projects. It includes a number of examples illustrating what agencies are currently doing in this area.
Work Zone and Traffic Analysis - This page provides resources for planning for a work zone project and analyzing potential impacts. This includes links to a number of work zone and traffic analysis software tools.

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