Innovative Traffic Control Devices for Improving Safety at Rural Short-Term Maintenance Work Zones

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) sponsored a Texas Transportation Institute (TTI) research project to determine if innovative traffic control devices could improve safety at short-term rural maintenance work zones. This project examined several innovative countermeasures to determine if they would produce a positive safety benefit at short-term rural work zones. This paper describes the results of the evaluation of these devices (speed display trailers, radar drones, portable rumble strips, alternative worker vests, and fluorescent orange roll-up signs). Recommendations for the application of these devices to short-term work zones are also made.