Work Zone Safety & Mobility Performance Measures: Implementation Guide

Performance monitoring allows transportation agencies to continuously track and analyze work zone safety and mobility impacts throughout a project’s lifecycle. By establishing clear, actionable performance measures, agencies can quantify operational impacts to increase accountability, efficiently allocate resources, and evaluate how well existing policies and procedures function in the field. To assist agencies in achieving these benefits, this implementation guide provides practical guidance for establishing and managing continuous work zone performance monitoring programs in alignment with Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) 23 CFR 630 Subpart J rulemaking. The document emphasizes a “data-first” approach, helping practitioners inventory existing work zone activity, safety, mobility, and exposure data, including data sources like crash databases and crowdsourced probe data alongside emerging datasets such as connected vehicle telematics. Building upon this data availability, the report outlines how to select and calculate practical project- and program-level performance measures to meet minimum compliance and operational goals. To assist in this selection, the guide presents safety and mobility performance measures, detailing their specific benefits and limitations, and outlines available calculation options ranging from in-house data development to leveraging open-source tools and multi-state platforms. Furthermore, the report provides actionable recommendations for agencies to establish a foundational program using commonly available data, including crash data and the National Performance Management Research Data Set (NPMRDS), along with potential advanced analysis using higher resolution data sources. Finally, the guide provides an annual reporting template, offering a structure agencies can use to easily incorporate their findings into their 5-year programmatic review.