RUMBLE STRIPS USED AS A TRAFFIC CONTROL DEVICE

IN AN EFFORT TO TEST AN AUDIBLE MEANS OF ALERTING DRIVERS TO DANGERS AHEAD (AN AUDIBLE SIGNAL HAS BEEN DETERMINED TO BE MORE RELIABLE AND STIMULATES A QUICKER REACTION THAN A VISUAL SIGNAL), TWENTY-THREE EXPERIMENTAL RUMBLE STRIPS WERE CONSTRUCTED ON APPROACHES TO NINE INTERSECTIONS WHICH WERE SELECTED ON THE BASIS OF THEIR ACCIDENT HISTORY. THE THREE DIFFERENT RUMBLE STRIP CONFIGURATIONS UTILIZED ARE ILLUSTRATED IN DIAGRAMS. ACCIDENTS AND ACCIDENT RATES THAT OCCURED AT RUMBLE STRIP LOCATIONS BEFORE AND AFTER INSTALLATION ARE TABULATED. TYPE I INSTALLATIONS SHOWED A 14 PERCENT DECREASE IN ACCIDENTS, WHILE TYPE II CAUSED A 9 PERCENT INCREASE IN ACCIDENTS, AND TYPE III, A 30 PERCENT DECREASE. ANALYSIS OF ACCIDENT DATA INDICATES THAT WHILE THERE WAS AN OVERALL REDUCTION OF ACCIDENTS FOLLOWING INSTALLATION OF RUMBLE STRIPS, THEIR EFFECTIVENESS OVER A LONGER PERIOD OF TIME WAS SUBSTANTIALLY REDUCED. ALTHOUGH THEY ARE AN EFFECTIVE TEMPORARY METHOD OF ALERTING TRAFFIC TO AN UNUSUAL CONDITION FOR AN INTERIM PERIOD REQUIRED TO COMPLETE A MORE PERMANENT CORRECTION, THEY ARE SEEN TO BE OF LITTLE OR NO VALUE AS PERMANENT CORRECTION FOR AN EXISTING HAZARD.

• Publication Date: 1972-4

Media Info

• Features: Figures; Tables;
• Pagination: p. 35-41
• Serial:
  • Highway Focus
  • Volume: 4
  • Issue Number: 3

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Crash rates; Crashes; Intersections; Rumble strips; Safety; Traffic control devices
• Subject Areas: Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00226616
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Jan 11 1974 12:00AM