Changeable Message Sign Messages for Work Zones: Time of Day, Days of Week, and Month Dates

Abstract

The New Jersey Department of Transportation initiated a research study designed in part to further the state of knowledge of changeable message sign message design with specific application to the needs in New Jersey. Laboratory studies of human factors are described here; the studies were conducted in New Jersey to evaluate shorter alternative messages than those currently used to display time of day, days of week, and calendar dates. These types of messages are often displayed on portable changeable message signs used in highway work zones. Among the findings were that a dash can be used instead of the term Thru to indicate roadwork for a range of successive days; the term Weekend is not a good descriptor for work that begins on Friday evening and ends on Monday morning; the term Days did not connote specific daytime, off-peak times for roadwork, but it may be satisfactory for certain time periods; likewise, the term Nights did not connote specific nighttime, off-peak times for roadwork, but it may be satisfactory for certain time periods; Nite is an acceptable substitute for Night; and calendar dates were not easily translated by drivers to specific days of the week.