UTILITIES AND ROADSIDE SAFETY

The purposes of this report are to compile the latest information on utility company, state department of transportation (DOT), and local highway agency roadside safety programs; to describe the current status of a combined federal and industry effort to implement roadside safety, including yielding poles; and to document recent developments in guardrail, concrete barrier, and crash cushion design to reduce utility maintenance costs, potential liability, and public health costs. Strategies are identified to deal with a relatively small number of poles on a prioritized, cost-effective basis. The report includes cost comparisons of various safety treatments for prioritized utility poles in highway rights-of-way, and a summary of the current status of litigation is given to provide an estimate of how recent precedents may affect future exposure. The report is presented in 8 chapters and 3 appendices: 1) Introduction; 2) Utility Pole Collisions; 3) Solutions; 4) Strategies; 5) Initiatives; 6) Legal Issues; 7) Professionalism; 8) Summary; A) Example of Recommended Guidelines for Utility Installations and Modifications; B) Example of Recommended Crash Reduction Program and Roadside Safety Treatments; and C) Examples of Lawsuits Involving Utility Pole Crashes.

• Record URL:
  • https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/23378
• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/isbn/0309094518
• Supplemental Notes:
  • This report was prepared by the Transportation Research Board Committee on Utilities. 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
• Corporate Authors:

  Transportation Research Board

  500 Fifth Street, NW
  Washington, DC  United States  20001
• Publication Date: 2004

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Features: Appendices; Figures; Photos; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 74 p.
• Serial:
  • Transportation Research Board State of the Art Report
  • Issue Number: 9
  • Publisher: Transportation Research Board

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Barriers (Roads); Costs; Countermeasures; Crash cushions; Crashes; Guardrails; Guidelines; Highway safety; Legal factors; Liability; Litigation; Recommendations; Right of way (Land); Roadside; Safety programs; State of the art reports; Strategic planning; Utility poles
• Uncontrolled Terms: Modifications
• Subject Areas: Design; Finance; Highways; Law; Research; Safety and Human Factors; I20: Design and Planning of Transport Infrastructure; I85: Safety Devices used in Transport Infrastructure;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00974266
• Record Type: Publication
• ISBN: 0309094518
• Files: TRIS, TRB
• Created Date: May 25 2004 12:00AM