Abstract
Small rural communities located along major state or county roadways typically find most of the traffic along their main thoroughfares is pass-through rather than local traffic. Unfortunately, drivers passing through these communities often enter at high rates of speeds, which are often significantly higher than the speed limit of the local segment. Speed management in rural areas requires different considerations compared to urban areas and, within the US, rural speed management is not as advanced with little experience or guidance for agencies to draw on. This paper summarizes the results of a study that evaluated, in part, several different types of transverse pavement markings within the speed transition zones in small rural communities. Three different countermeasures were evaluated: converging chevrons, transverse lane markings, and optical speed bars.
Highlights
Small rural communities located along major state or county roadways typically find most of the traffic along their main thoroughfares is pass-through rather than local traffic
Speed management in rural areas requires different considerations compared to urban areas and, within the US, rural speed management is not as advanced with little experience or guidance for agencies to draw on
This paper summarizes the results of a study that evaluated, in part, several different types of transverse pavement markings within the speed transition zones in small rural communities
Summary
Speeding is a major contributing factor in 30 percent of fatal crashes nationally in the US [1]. Speeding in rural communities located along major highways is especially problematic given that drivers must transition from a major high-speed, rural roadway to a low-speed community setting. The rural roadway provides high-speed mobility outside the community, yet the same road within town pro-. Drivers who have been traveling for some distance on the high-speed road, and are traveling through the community, may not receive the appropriate clues that the character of the roadway is changing and as a result do not adjust their speeds appropriately
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