Work Zone Operations Best Practices Guidebook (Third Edition) Publication No. FHWA-HOP-13-012 August 2013 Notice The Federal Highway Administration provides high-quality information to serve Government, industry, and the public in a manner that promotes public understanding. Standards and policies are used to ensure and maximize the quality, objectivity, utility, and integrity of its information. FHWA periodically reviews quality issues and adjusts its programs and processes to ensure continuous quality improvement. Technical Report Documentation Page 1. Report No. 2. Government Accession No. 3. Recipient’s Catalog No. FHWA-HOP-13-012 4. Title and Subtitle 5. Report Date July 2013 Work Zone Operations Best Practices Guidebook (Third Edition) 6. Performing Organization Code 7. Authors 8. Performing Organization Various Report No. 9. Performing Organization Name and Address 10. Work Unit No. (TRAIS) Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) 11251 Roger Bacon Drive Reston, VA 20190 11. Contract or Grant No. DTFH61-06-D-00005 12. Sponsoring Agency Name and Address 13. Type of Report and Period Federal Highway Administration Covered 1/23/2008 to 10/30/2013 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE Washington, D.C. 20590 14. Sponsoring Agency Code HOTO 15. Supplementary Notes Project Leader - Tracy Scriba, FHWA 16. Abstract This Work Zone Best Practices Guidebook provides an easily accessible compilation of work zone operations practices used and recommended by various States and localities around the country. The Guidebook is a reference document that can be updated with new approaches, technologies, and practices for effectively managing work zones and reducing the impacts of work zones on mobility and safety as they are identified. The best practices are descriptive, not prescriptive. They describe approaches that have been successfully used by transportation agencies, along with contact information to find out more from the agency using the practice. Each organization must determine which of these practices are best suited for its particular situation, considering all the site-specific factors that affect work zone operations. The best practices are grouped into 11 major categories to help practitioners easily find practices that deal with a particular topic. Practices can also be found via six cross-references that enable users to find best practices in several different ways, and a subject index that offers 49 topics and subtopics for more specific searches. The Guidebook is available in two formats: a print version, which can be ordered by mail or downloaded as a PDF and printed, and a web-based, searchable version. 17. Key Words 18. Distribution Statement Work zone, best practice, safety, mobility, guidebook, No restrictions. This document is available to the public. construction, maintenance, road rehabilitation, policy, planning, design, traffic analysis and modeling, construction methods, contracting, traveler and traffic information, traffic management planning, work zone management, worker safety, work zone ITS. 19. Security Classif. (of this report) 20. Security Classif. (of this page) 21. No. of Pages 22. Price Unclassified Unclassified 293 N/A Form DOT F 1700.7 (8-72) Reproduction of completed page authorized. This page intentionally blank Table of Contents Foreword and Acknowledgments ...................................................................................... i Work Zone Best Practices Registration Form ..................................................................iii Work Zone Best Practices Submission Form ................................................................... v Work Zone Best Practices Comment Form .....................................................................vii Overview of the Guidebook ..............................................................................................1 Best Practices Cross-References By State/FHWA ......................................................................................................3 By Project Life Cycle Stage ...................................................................................4 By Nature of the Work ...........................................................................................5 By Traffic Conditions ..............................................................................................5 By Geographic/Demographic Characteristics ........................................................5 By Roadway Characteristics ..................................................................................6 Best Practices Descriptions A - Policy and Procedures .....................................................................................7 B - Public Relations, Education, and Outreach (Program Level)…………………49 C - Modeling and Impact Analysis .......................................................................71 D - Planning and Programming ...........................................................................79 E - Project Development and Design.................................................................101 F - Contracting and Bidding Procedures............................................................135 G - Construction/Maintenance Materials, Methods, Practices, and Specifications...................................................................................147 H -Traveler and Traffic Information (Project Related) ........................................199 I - Enforcement ..................................................................................................229 J - ITS and Innovative Technology .....................................................................241 K - Evaluation and Feedback .............................................................................257 Best Practices Subject Index ........................................................................................275 This page intentionally blank Work Zone Operations Best Practices Guidebook Foreword and Acknowledgments This Guidebook is the third release of a resource designed to give State and local transportation agencies, construction contractors, transportation planners, trainers, researchers and others with interest in work zone operations access to information and points of contact about current best practices for improving work zone mobility and safety. The Guidebook is available in two formats: a print version, which can be ordered by mail or downloaded as a PDF and printed, and a web-based, searchable version. The PDF and web-based versions of the Guidebook are available via the Federal Highway Administration Office of Operations work zone website: http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/workzones. Printed copies of the Guidebook can be obtained by sending an email with the name of the publication you are requesting, number of copies needed, and shipping directions, to [email protected]. In addition to the collection of work zone best practices and associated cross- references, the Guidebook includes three forms designed to make the Guidebook more useful to current and future users. These are 1) a registration form, 2) a best practices submission form, and 3) a best practices review and comment form. Please complete the registration form so that you can be included in distributions of future editions of this document and notified when updated information is available. The Guidebook’s origins date back to the June 1999 American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) Meeting of the Subcommittee on Traffic Engineering (SCOTE). At that meeting, the Director or FHWA’s Office of Transportation Operations and the Chairman of the AASHTO SCOTE Best Practices in Work Zones Task Force agreed to collaborate on the development, publication, and distribution of a Work Zones Best Practices Guidebook that would give practitioners easy access to these best practices. Since then, AASHTO and FHWA have continued to work together in the development of the Guidebook. AASHTO provides subject matter expertise and access to practitioners, while FHWA provides national coordination, research, and publication support. The AASHTO Work Zone Task Force has continued to collaborate with FHWA on the Guidebook. In preparation for this version of the Guidebook, the Task Force provided a review of new practices being considered for addition to the Guidebook and provided recommendations for deleting, revising, and combining existing best practices. In addition, State points of contact reviewed their practices and provided recommended updates and additions, as well as deletions of practices no longer in use. FHWA also reviewed all practices, and combined some similar practices to avoid repetition. As a result of these efforts, the Guidebook has been significantly updated: • 23 new practices were added to the Guidebook in this version. • 66 out-of-date practices were deleted. • 3 practices were combined with others for clarity • Nearly all of the 172 practices were updated. i Work Zone Operations Best Practices Guidebook This page intentionally blank ii Work Zone Operations Best Practices Guidebook Work Zone Best Practices Guidebook Registration Please take a few moments to complete the following registration form. By submitting the form you will be notified when addendums are available on the web site, and included in any distributions of future printed editions of the Guidebook. An online version of the form is available on the FHWA work zone website at http://www.ops.fhwa.dot.gov/wz/practices/best/bestpractices.htm.