EFFECT OF MEDIAN DIVIDERS ON DRIVER BEHAVIOR
THERE IS QUITE A DIFFERENCE OF OPINION AMONG HIGHWAY ENGINEERS REGARDING THE RELATIVE MERITS AND EFFECTIVENESS OF THE DIFFERENT TYPES AND WIDTHS OF MEDIAN DIVIDERS. TECHNICAL QUESTIONS HAVE BEEN RAISED AS TO WHETHER OR NOT THE WALL TYPE MEDIAN IS DESIRABLE AND AS TO THE PROPER WIDTH OF EACH OF THE TWO LANES FOR ONE DIRECTION OF TRAVEL ON A 4-LANE DIVIDED HIGHWAY. A STUDY WAS CONDUCTED IN NEW YORK IN AN ATTEMPT TO OBTAIN FACTUAL INFORMATION ON THE SUBJECT. VEHICLE SPEEDS AND PLACEMENTS WERE RECORDED IN 1950 DURING DAYLIGHT HOURS AT 18 SITES ON THE LONG ISLAND PARKWAY SYSTEM, A 4-LANE DIVIDED PARKWAY, CARRYING VOLUMES AS HIGH AS 2,800 VEHICLES PER HOUR IN ONE DIRECTION OF TRAVEL. SIX TYPES OF MEDIAN TRAFFIC DIVIDERS WERE STUDIED AND THE RESULTS WERE THE BASIS OF THE PRELIMINARY REPORT. ADDITIONAL DATA WERE RECORDED IN 1951 AT FOUR OF THE ORIGINAL SITES AND AT FOUR OTHER SITES ON RURAL 4-LANE DIVIDED HIGHWAYS NEAR ALBANY. THE 1951 STUDY INCLUDED BOTH DAY AND NIGHT OBSERVATIONS./AUTHOR/
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Supplemental Notes:
- No 137, pp 1-17, 11 FIG, 9 TAB, 2 REF Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
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Authors:
- Billion, C E
- Publication Date: 1956
Media Info
- Media Type: Digital/other
- Pagination: 17p
- Monograph Title: Median design: effect on traffic behavior
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Serial:
- Highway Research Board Bulletin
- Issue Number: 137
- Publisher: Highway Research Board
Subject/Index Terms
- TRT Terms: Behavior; Divided highways; Drivers; Four lane highways; Location; Medians; Rural highways; Speed; Traffic volume; Width
- Old TRIS Terms: Dividers; Placement
- Subject Areas: Design; Highways;
Filing Info
- Accession Number: 00203393
- Record Type: Publication
- Files: TRIS, TRB
- Created Date: Jul 7 1994 12:00AM