• 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
  • Join Listserv
  • Contact
  • Twitter
  • 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
    • Transportation 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
    • COVID-19 Guidance
  • Public Awareness
  • Events
  • About
  • Listserv
  • Contact
  • Search
Publication

Traffic Control at Flagger-Operated Work Zones on Two-Lane Roads

Author/Presenter: Shibuya, Shuetsu; Nakatsuji, Takashi; Fujiwara, Takashi; Matsuyama, Eiji
Abstract:

To clarify the traffic flow characteristics and the signal timings at work zones controlled by flaggers, traffic flows at some work zones were measured. Using the measurement data a computer simulation program based on the microscopic traffic flow model was developed. The simulation results were in accordance with the measured results. Using the simulation program traffic behavior was analyzed for various work- zone conditions under the assumption that no heavy vehicles were mixed with the traffic. First, the delay characteristics at short work zones less than 200 m long were investigated. The summed delay of the acceleration delay and the speed-decrease delay was between 35 and 40% of the total delay. This suggests that those delays cannot be ignored in estimates of delay at short work zones. Next, three methods for estimating the green intervals under flaggers’ control were presented: nomograph, regression equation, and analytical optimization. The first two methods were obtained directly from the simulation results, whereas the third was derived by describing both the queuing and the acceleration delays with a regression equation and minimizing the total delay. The analytically optimized green intervals diverged from the simulated ones as the traffic became heavier. The signal timings produced by a nomograph and a regression equation can be installed in pretimed traffic lights as a substitute for flaggers, and the optimized ones can be installed in actuated lights combined with traffic detectors.

Source: Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board
Volume: 1529
Issue: 1
Publisher: Transportation Research Board
Publication Date: January 1, 1996
Source URL: Link to URL
Publication Types: Books, Reports, Papers, and Research Articles
Topics: Flaggers; Temporary Traffic Control; Traffic Delays; Traffic Flow

Copyright © 2023 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