| Title | Safety Evaluation of Profiled Thermoplastic Pavement Markings |
|---|---|
| Record ID | 65500 |
| Personal Name Creator |
Lyon, Craig; Persaud, Bhagwant; Eccles, Kimberly |
| Corporate Creator | VHB/Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Inc.; Persaud Lyon, Inc. |
| Corporate Contributor |
United States. Federal Highway Administration |
| Publisher | United States. Federal Highway Administration |
| Publication Date | 20180301 |
| Language | English |
| Abstract | The Development of Crash Modification Factors (CMFs) program conducted safety evaluation of profiled thermoplastic pavement markings for the Evaluation of Low-Cost Safety Improvements Pooled Fund Study. This study evaluated application of profiled thermoplastic pavement markings. This strategy involves upgrading existing markings from flat-line thermoplastic or other standard markings to the profiled product. These profiled markings are designed to provide an improved level of vision to drivers, particularly during wet-road surface conditions. Geometric, traffic, and crash data were obtained for two-lane and multilane road sections in Florida and South Carolina where the treatment was applied to the edge lines. To account for potential selection bias related to regression-to-the-mean, an empirical Bayes before–after analysis was conducted. The analysis controlled for changes in traffic volumes over time and time trends in crash counts unrelated to the treatment. Intersection-related, snow/slush/ice, and animal crashes were excluded from the analysis. Only nighttime wet-road crashes, a principal target crash type, exhibited a material change—an estimated CMF of 0.908. Although the estimated CMF was based on a small sample of crashes and was not statistically significant at the 95-percent confidence level, it was consistent between the two States, which suggests that its use might be justifiable. The benefit–cost ratio for flat-line thermoplastic markings was 3.65:1 based on the consistent reduction in nighttime wet-road crashes and estimated with conservative cost and service life assumptions. Applying the sensitivity analysis recommended by the U.S. Department of Transportation, this value could range from 2.01:1 to 5.04:1. These results suggest that the treatment—even with conservative assumptions on cost, service life, and the value of a statistical life—can be applied cost effectively despite the relatively small crash reduction effects. |
| Rosap ID | dot:37523 |
| Rosap URL | https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/37523 |
| TRT Terms | Raised road markings; Traffic crashes; Traffic safety |
| General Subjects | Road markings--Evaluation--Safety measures; Reflectors (Safety devices)--Evaluation--Safety measures |
| Geographical Coverage |
United States |
| OCLC | 1031404596 |
| Contract Number | DTFH61-13-D-00001 |
| Report Number | FHWA-HRT-17-075; HRDS-20/03-18(200)E |
| Resource type | Tech Report |
| URL | https://ntlrepository.blob.core.windows.net/lib/65000/65500/65500/FHWA-HRT-17-075.pdf |
| Format | |
| Database | NTL Digital Repository |