The safety of the public is a matter of paramount concern in the design, construction, operation and maintenance of transportation systems.

Over one-half of all accidental deaths occur on our intermodal transportation systems; more than 40,000 on highways alone.

Transportation fatalities and injuries remain a national public health problems that must continue to be addressed by government officials and the private sector to assure the public their mobility, safety and comfort will continue to be improved.

For example, ARTBA recognizes that the Local Transportation Assistance Program (LTAP) is an effective, established national network for implementing new technology at all levels of local government.

LTAP Centers should be utilized to communicate and demonstrate safety and operations improvements for the three million miles (74 percent) of roadway under local control.

One of ARTBA’s important goals is the reduction of transportation fatalities, injuries, and accidents.

There has been an encouraging reduction in highway fatalities, from a record level of 54,589 in 1972 to 40,115 in 1993, while vehicle miles traveled grew.

This reduction is due in large part to federal, state and local safety programs and improved highways.

Fatalities are one measure of the safety management performance of the nation’s transportation system, but they are only a small indication of the total impact of accidents on the national economy.

Construction programs utilizing safety hardware and improved operational procedures are inherent roadway environment accident counter measures that enhance highway safety and are supported by ARTBA, which is concerned they receive adequate funding.

Safety enhancements for modes of transportation other than highways must also receive continued attention.

The societal costs of highway crashes contribute to the rapid escalation of the nation’s health care expenses.

In 1990, the last year for which we have complete data, injuries, fatalities, property damage and other expenses from highway crashes exacted a total cost of $137.5 billion.

Accident countermeasures that enhance highway safety provide economic benefits as well as human benefits.

A continuing concern of ARTBA is the problem of work zone accidents.

Fatalities in work zones increased from 489 in 1982 to 782 in 1989.

The number of fatalities declined to 762 in 1993, surely due in part to an increase in safety awareness by government officials and contractors and their use of well conceived Traffic Control Plans (TCPs), including utilization of safety hardware and safe work zone operating practices.

Further improvements are possible and needed.

Transportation safety, including effective management systems, uniform safety standards and guidelines, and a priority for adequate funding is an issue of major national significance.

To ensure appropriate national uniformity and priority, insulated from extraneous geographic and political considerations, ARTBA supports an expanded and continuing leadership and financial role for the federal government in intermodal transportation safety programs and initiatives.

While the federal government should continue to assume the primary role in intermodal transportation safety, ARTBA believes the issue is so important that additional financial and program support needs to come from state and local governments, and the private sector.

The following are the current transportation safety related issues for which ARTBA is seeking solutions.

1. Age, Mobility, and Safety

The U.S. Bureau of Census indicates that by the year 2020, a projected 17 percent of the population will be 65 years of age or older, and will account for nearly 22 percent of the driving population.

Such transportation factors as peak hour travel characteristics, distribution patterns and modal changes are likely to be fundamentally altered by future elderly populations and may require policy changes.

The aging population will have a declining capacity for vision, hearing and reaction times.

The Transportation Research Board Special Report 218 has identified particular problems with night vision, glare recovery and peripheral vision among older drivers.

To accommodate this changing population and driver profile, ARTBA supports upgrading and maintaining pavement marking and signs to performance levels sufficient to meet the needs of the older drivers as well as research into how roadway safety and mobility could be improved through upgraded quality and operational standards and other aids to vision and warning.

Once accepted, new technology standards should be implemented as rapidly as possible.

2. Coordination of Transportation Safety Research & Technology

ARTBA urges a coordination and expansion of safety research both in the private and government sectors to emphasize innovation, research and new technology.

At the same time, ARTBA believes it is imperative newly developed technologies be rapidly disseminated among all jurisdictions, employed to their fullest, and funded to the maximum extent possible.

In order to accomplish the latter, ARTBA recognizes and supports the Technology Transfer programs administered by FHWA, such as the efforts of its Office of Technology Applications, the National Highway Institute, and the LTAPs.

3. Highway Safety Management System

ARTBA strongly supports the implementation of system processes and programs to ensure that all opportunities to improve highway safety are identified, considered, evaluated and implemented where appropriate.

Highway safety should be defined as the process of reducing traffic accidents, deaths, injuries and property damage through vehicle, traffic and roadway safety improvements.

Operations are defined as those activities associated with managing, controlling and regulating vehicle, traffic and roadway safety components.

4. Improved Maintenance

Adequate funding for maintenance is necessary to assure functional availability and to prevent the deterioration of roadway surfaces, shoulders and bridges, traffic control devices and other appurtenances.

Inadequate maintenance has had a major impact on the over $137.5 billion loss to the public in 1990.

ARTBA supports programs that educate the public and governing agencies as to the importance and cost of continuous maintenance.

Additionally, ARTBA urges increased funding by all levels of government for improved and adequate maintenance programs.

5. Quality

In recognition that there is an ever increasing value and benefit to improving the quality of safety processes, programs and traffic control devices, ARTBA strongly supports the National Quality Initiative and management practices such as Total Quality Management.

Quality highways are an essential element of our national transportation system.

Quality highways play a vital role in helping us compete globally and in moving people and goods in a safe, economically efficient manner.

ARTBA supports research into how roadway safety and mobility could be improved through upgraded quality and operational standards and other aids to vision, warning and accident mitigation.

Once accepted, new technology standards should be implemented as rapidly as possible.

6. Low Volume Roads

There is a need for cost effective application of highway and traffic engineering principles to improve safety on low volume roads.

Responsibility for traffic safety improvements must be shared by federal, state, and local officials.

Motorists needs should be considered, safety and costs must be balanced in order to provide appropriate and cost effective safety/service.

ARTBA supports increased funding to improve safety of operations on low volume roads.

7. Safety Construction Programs

The emphasis on safety consideration in the design, construction, reconstruction, and maintenance of our highways is an important factor in the highway safety effort.

In 1990 (the last year for completed data), the total cost to society from highway crashes was an alarming $137.5 billion! (Included in this number is the effect of over 40,000 deaths.)

In recent Congressional testimony, the Secretary of Transportation said, "effective highway safety programs are good economics as well as good medicine."

Therefore, we strongly support the use of products and services designed to enhance highway safety.

In addition, adherence to design standards and guidelines that improve highway safety is urged.

Finally, ARTBA supports continuation of categorical funding for safety construction, such as the Hazard Elimination and Rail-Highway Grade Crossing programs.

8. Safety Related Data Collection

Due to the many safety related options available to highway engineers, a need exists for the collection of reliable data on accidents and the performance of counter-measure systems.

The collection and use of safety related data would support a number of desirable procedures, among them:

(1) counter-measure project cost/benefit analysis,

(2) life cycle cost analysis,

(3) assessment of facts/evidence potentially in support of a reasonable and logical defense in tort situations,

(4) guidance for the direction of research and development in search of innovative products and procedures, and

(5) evaluation of the quality and performance of safety counter-measures.

Therefore, ARTBA supports efforts to collect safety related data and for this information to be disseminated to public agencies and private firms engaged in highway engineering and safety operations.

9. Support of Design and Operations Criteria

Safety must be given the highest priority in the development of all transportation projects.

ARTBA supports establishing and updating cost-effective geometric design criteria to maximize roadway safety.

ARTBA also supports development of criteria to measure and evaluate the highway safety impacts of highway operations and maintenance policies utilizing a levels of service approach.

All parties should use the most currently acceptable, cost-effective criteria and policies to enhance highway safety.

10. Tort Liability

State and local governments are facing increasing numbers of claims alleging that particular highway accidents were caused or partially caused by improper or negligent highway design, operation, or maintenance.

This growth in tort claims has led to rising liability insurance premiums and increasing costs of court actions,which, in turn, diminish funds available for needed capital improvements and reconstruction programs.

ARTBA recommends that government agencies train appropriate staff and implement safe operating and maintenance procedures, and that they document key design decisions.

These measures should lead to sound management practices that assure continued improvement in the safety of our road and street facilities, and at the same time strengthen defenses against unwarranted tort claims.

11. Transportation of Hazardous Materials

More than 250,000 shipments of hazardous materials are made each day.

While most such shipments are by truck, a great potential for critical incidents also lies with the railroads due to the amounts that can be carried by a single train.

In view of this potential problem, ARTBA recognizes the need for rehabilitation and proper maintenance of the nation’s rail facilities and rolling stock.

ARTBA supports continued research to develop special programs and procedures involved in the shipment of hazardous materials and the implementation of these programs.

Regulations concerning the transport of hazardous materials should be specific to the mode and container type.

As a long-range consideration, each mode should require a program of inspection and maintenance.

12. Uniformity in Design and Installation of Traffic Control Devices

Transportation safety, convenience and mobility are highly dependent on the uniform design, installation and maintenance of traffic control devices and other highway safety appurtenances.

ARTBA strongly urges all transportation officials to recognize the importance of adequate and properly installed and maintained traffic control devices and other highway safety appurtenances.

Temporary traffic control systems should be carefully monitored under varying conditions of traffic volume, light, and weather to ensure that traffic control measures are operating effectively and that all devices used are clearly visible, clean, and in good repair.

ARTBA encourages the FHWA to maintain its leadership role in administering the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices and to continue serving as a catalyst for traffic safety information and standards.

ARTBA further advocates that current information on technical advances and developments should be distributed to state and local agencies in a timely manner.

13. Work Zone Safety

As the Interstate Highway System nears completion, transportation funding for construction is shifting to the reconstruction, rehabilitation, resurfacing and repair of existing roadways.

The traveling public and construction workers continue to be exposed to hazards as they travel through and work in these construction and maintenance zones.

Much of this work will be performed at night to lessen the impact on traffic flow, but this night time activity will create additional serious hazards for motorists and workers.

It is essential that public officials, highway engineers, manufacturers, utilities and contractors be aware of their responsibility to provide a safe environment.

The use of traffic control plans, properly maintained traffic control devices, and the uniformity of those devices used in construction zones and compliance with the provisions of the MUTCD are absolutely essential to improve safety in construction and maintenance work zones.

ARTBA recommends that the revised Part VI be published and distributed immediately at the conclusion of the rulemaking process, and that such expeditious publishing and distribution of PART VI not be delayed by the reformatting process.

ARTBA supports FHWA encouragement of training, education and voluntary certification programs for personnel responsible for traffic control at highway construction sites.

The failure of motorists to comply with work zone advisory speed limits is of increasing concern.

ARTBA urges greater use of regulatory, rather than advisory, speed limits, along with additional police enforcement to control traffic on major projects when work is performed under traffic.

It has been shown that the use of individual bid items for traffic control devices provides a more efficient method of paying for the devices, encourages the contractor to provide better maintenance of devices, and provides a better means of enforcing the provisions of the traffic control plan, thus enhancing project safety.

ARTBA support the use of individual bid items for providing, installing, moving, replacing, and maintaining traffic control devices and safety systems and for the provision of police enforcement.

In order to encourage states to upgrade traffic control devices and procedures and to reduce serious losses now occurring in work zones, ARTBA supports the use of 100 percent federal funds for work zone safety programs.

ARTBA further supports the ISTEA provision requiring the Secretary to develop and implement a work zone safety program.

ARTBA urges diligent daytime and night time inspection and maintenance of work zone traffic control programs to obtain the levels of service as they relate to motorist needs by contractors and highway officials, to ensure ongoing compliance with the original traffic plan.