• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
Logo

Work Zone Safety Information Clearinghouse

Library of Resources to Improve Roadway Work Zone Safety for All Roadway Users

  • About
  • Newsletter
  • Contact
  • X
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Work Zone Data
    • At a Glance
    • National & State Traffic Data
    • Work Zone Traffic Crash Trends and Statistics
    • Worker Fatalities and Injuries at Road Construction Sites
  • Topics of Interest
    • Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety
    • Smart Work Zones
    • Work Zone Safety and MobilityTransportation Management Plans
    • Accommodating Pedestrians
    • Worker Safety and Welfare
    • Project Coordination in Work Zones
  • Training
    • Flagger
    • Online Courses
    • Toolboxes
    • FHWA Safety Grant Products
    • Certification and
      Accreditation
  • Work Zone Devices
  • Laws, Standards & Policies
  • Public Awareness
  • Events
  • About
  • Contact
  • Search
Publication

Estimating Work Zone Capacity from Point Sensors: Challenges and Lessons Learned

Author/Presenter: Fowler, Tyler J.; Schroeder, Bastian J.; Rouphail, Nagui M.; Sajjadi, Soheil Seyyed
Abstract:

In recent years, federal and state-level policies on work zone mobility have placed an emphasis on performance monitoring of significant freeway work zones. With new requirements for assessing work zone impacts on the traveling public, agencies face important challenges with instrumenting and evaluating work zones. Traditionally, agencies have relied on custom instrumentation or person-based monitoring of work zones, which can be very resource-intensive. In an effort to overcome the need for custom data collection in work zones, this paper explores the use to existing roadside radar sensors that are commonplace for many agencies across the US. The method uses detailed work zone diaries completed by the contractor to identify location and temporal extent of work zone activities, and uses that information to query an existing sensor database. The paper presents the approach, shows results, and discusses challenges associated with this automated data collection approach. The method is ultimately geared at estimated work zone capacities for use in the freeway facilities analysis method described in the Highway Capacity Manual 2010. The findings show some promise, but are oftentimes impacted by inadequate placement of the sensors. The paper concludes that a targeted instrumentation may in the end allow for more reliable and efficient data collection, despite the additional resource needs.

Source: Presented at the 91st Annual Meeting of the Transportation Research Board, January 2012, Washington, D.C.
Publisher: Transportation Research Board
Publication Date: 2012
Source URL: Link to URL
Publication Types: Books, Reports, Papers, and Research Articles
Topics: Data Collection; Work Zone Capacity

Copyright © 2025 American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA). The National Work Zone Safety Information Clearinghouse is a project of the ARTBA Transportation Development Foundation. It is operated in cooperation with the U.S. Federal Highway Administration and Texas A&M Transportation Institute. | Copyright Statement · Privacy Policy · Disclaimer
American Road and Transportation Builders Association Transportation Development Foundation, American Road and Transportation Builders Association U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration Texas A&M Transportation Institute