USDOT Congestion Initiative Focus on Work Zone Mobility

A new Work Zone Safety and Mobility Rule was published on September 9, 2004, in the Federal Register. All State and local governments that receive Federal-aid funding are required to comply with the provisions of the Rule by October 12, 2007. The updated Rule has several goals, including:

• To encourage the expansion of thinking beyond the work zone to systems management on a corridor-wide, network, and regional basis. The impact of a work zone may extend beyond the physical location of the construction itself to affect safety and mobility miles away.
• To expand work zone impacts management beyond traffic safety and control by using transportation management strategies – including public information efforts and operational strategies such as the use of ITS in work zones.
• To advocate innovative thinking in work zone planning, design, and management.

To achieve these goals, the Rule addresses:

• Policy-level provisions to help agencies implement an overall work zone safety and mobility policy for the management of work zone impacts.
• Agency-level processes and procedures to help agencies implement and sustain work zone policies.
• Project-level procedures to help agencies assess and mange work zone impacts through the development of Transportation Management Plans (TMPs) that describe the transportation management strategies that will be used for a project. For some projects, the TMP must contain operational strategies and public outreach in addition to a traffic control plan.

Work under the Congestion Initiative is focused on moving the States to 100 percent compliance with the rule. This effort involves regional workshops, technical resource guides, sharing examples of successful implementation efforts, and peer-to-peer exchanges. As States make advances in reducing work zone congestion and improving safety,these new techniques and tools will be further shared with other transportation agencies through a comprehensive work zone technology transfer campaign (WZTTC). The WZTTC is a joint initiative with the Highways for Life Program and includes a Work Zone Peer-to-Peer Program and focused onsite technical assistance that will share successes across transportation agencies to further advance the state-of the practice in work zone management.