• 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

Work Zone Intrusion Alarm Effectiveness

Author/Presenter: Krupa, Cathy
Abstract:

The New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) commissioned a study to evaluate how effective a work zone safety device known as the “SonoBlaster! ® Work Zone Intrusion Alarm” would be in protecting maintenance workers from injury caused by vehicles that breach the work zone, and how well it would be accepted by workers. The device is mounted on a traffic cone and when impacted by a vehicle, emits an alarm that provides advance warning to allow workers to react to avoid the intruding vehicle. The device also alerts the driver who may be drowsy or distracted, who can respond by braking or steering out of the work zone, or both actions.

In a pilot test of the device, SonoBlaster! ®-equipped traffic cones were used with standard cones to close a lane of traffic for maintenance work. Two impact simulations were performed resulting in sounding of the alarm, as no impacts occurred from traveling vehicles. The alarm’s sound volume and duration were satisfactory during normal traffic conditions for distances of at least 200 ft, including when ear protection was worn, but no conclusion could be made about hearing the alarm during jack hammer operations. Employees indicated that several set-up procedures were difficult. Moreover, in multiple instances the alarm fired when the control knob was in the locked, unarmed position. Additional field trials could not be scheduled. However, NJDOT believes that problems with quality control and reliability, combined with the cost of the alarm, raise doubts about the desirability of and benefits to be gained from deploying the device on NJDOT maintenance jobs.

Publisher: New Jersey Department of Transportation
Publication Date: September 2010
Full Text URL: Link to URL
Publication Types: Books, Reports, Papers, and Research Articles
Topics: Intrusion Alarms; Measures of Effectiveness; Work Zone Safety; Worker Safety

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