Internal Traffic Control Plans

While a temporary traffic control plan describes how a specific work zone is to be set up to ensure the safety of the motoring public, construction equipment and vehicles within the work space are not addressed. An internal traffic control plan (ITCP) is a tool that project managers can use to coordinate and control the flow of construction vehicles, equipment, and workers operating in close proximity within the activity area to ensure the safety of workers. Recent federal regulations require safety plans of all construction contractors prepared by competent persons. The concept of ITCP was developed as a promising intervention in research conducted by the Laborers’ Health and Safety Fund for the Federal Highway Administration. This study found that only one-third of highway worker injuries are traffic-related, and that approximately half of the fatal injuries of workers on foot in the work space involve a backing construction vehicle. Among interventions that were developed during this research was the provision of an internal traffic control plan to control traffic within the work space. Model ITCPs were developed for paving, dirt spread, and trenching operations. Additional accident data on worker injuries was collected and analyzed by Pratt et al. of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). In 2002, NIOSH sponsored research to prove the applicability of the ITCP concept to paving operations on freeway work zones. Two asphalt paving and two portland cement concrete sites were observed in this research, and ITCPs were developed for each site. An ITCP development guide to aid contractors in preparing ITCPs was also developed in this research. This paper will describe the preparation of ITCPs and discuss field observations of asphalt and concrete paving operations. While additional research is needed, this intervention shows promise to reduce worker injuries in highway construction zones.