Framework for Highway Safety Mitigation: The Utah Experience

Abstract

Safety has always been an important component in the planning, design, and operation of highways. A framework for highway safety mitigation is outlined in this paper that provides a logical and comprehensive context within which efforts to improve highway safety can be made. This framework incorporates predictive methods of highway safety analysis to allow transportation officials to proactively improve the safety of the transportation system. This framework has been developed around the Roadway Safety Management Process contained in the Highway Safety Manual (HSM) and has six primary steps: 1) Network Screening, 2) Diagnosis, 3) Countermeasure Selection, 4) Economic Appraisal, 5) Project Prioritization, and 6) Effectiveness Evaluation. In addition to methods used in the HSM, alternative methods of predictive highway safety analysis are discussed in context of their application. This framework for safety mitigation can be applicable to transportation agencies worldwide to maximize benefits resulting from highway safety investment.