U.S. Depapartment of Transportation Federal Highway Administration Office of Operations – Making Work Zones Work Better

The combination of more work zones and heavier traffic volumes will result in more impacts from work zones. The American public cited work zones as second only to poor traffic flow in causing traveler dissatisfaction. The top improvements suggested relate to roadway repairs and work zones: more durable paving materials, repairs made during non-rush hours, and reducing repair time. The FHWA has defined “Vital Few” priority areas for attention and near-term action. These priority areas include congestion mitigation and safety. Reducing work zone delay by aggressively anticipating and mitigating congestion caused by highway work zones is one area that can be influenced to have a positive impact on relieving congestion.