Work Zone Mobility and Safety Program
Photo collage: temporary lane closure, road marking installation, cone with mounted warning light, and drum separated work zones.
Office of Operations 21st Century Operations Using 21st Century Technologies

Publications & Studies

stack of published materials

Best Practices
Construction Strategies
Contracting Strategies
ITS and Technology
Performance Measurement
Public Information and Outreach
Regulation and Policy
Training
Research
Work Zone & Traffic Analysis/Management

To order a hardcopy of a publication, please send an email message with the name of the publication you are requesting and shipping directions to workzonepubs@dot.gov.

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Best Practices

Construction Strategies

Night Work/Off-Peak Work

Full Road Closure and Lane Closure

  • Full Road Closure for Work Zone Operations - A Cross-Cutting Study (August 2003) - The report provides a summary of how departments of transportation in Oregon, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Washington, and Delaware each used a full closure approach to conduct a road rehabilitation/reconstruction project. (FHWA-OP-04-009) (EDL# 13795) (HTML, PDF, 827KB)
  • Full Road Closure for Work Zone Operations: A Case Study. Reducing the Impact of Construction During the Rehabilitation of a Major Interstate Highway. Interstate 95 in Wilmington, Delaware (FHWA-OP-05-012) (2004) (HTML, PDF, 199KB)
  • Full Road Closure for Work Zone Operations: A Case Study. Accelerating Construction and Reducing Crashes During Rehabilitation of a Major Downtown Route. M-10 Lodge Freeway in Detroit, Michigan (FHWA-OP-05-013) (2004) (HTML, PDF, 224KB)
  • Full Road Closure for Work Zone Operations: A Case Study. Using Weekend Closures to Expedite Road Rehabilitation and Minimize the Impacts on Motorists and Road Builders. I-84 Banfield Freeway in Portland, Oregon (FHWA-OP-05-014) (2004) (HTML, PDF, 203KB)
  • "Shorter Duration, Safer Work Zones, More Satisfied Travelers" (HTML, PDF, 81KB) Brochure on successful applications of full road closures in work zones. (FHWA-OP-03-086)
  • NCHRP Synthesis 293 - Reducing and Mitigating Impacts of Lane Occupancy During Construction and Maintenance (PDF, 3.2MB) - Report describing the current state of the practice for reducing and mitigating the impacts of lane occupancy during construction and maintenance.
  • Lane Closure Strategy for the Denver Metro area (Region 6) (PDF, 1.2MB)
  • Lane Closure Policy for Region 4 (Northern Colorado) (PDF, 82.6KB)
  • Lane Closure Policy Development, Enforcement, and Exceptions: A Survey of Seven State Transportation Agencies (PDF, 872KB) - This report, developed by Center for Transportation Research and Education at Iowa State University, examines the lane closure policies from several state departments of transportation.

Contracting Strategies

  • Primer on Contracting for the 21st Century (PDF, 357KB) - This document, which was prepared by the Contract Administration Task Force of the AASHTO Subcommittee on Construction, lists various contracting and contract administration techniques that are currently being used by various contracting agencies in their transportation programs.

ITS and Technology

  • ITS for Work Zones Leaflet: Deployment Benefits and Lessons Learned - This leaflet summarizes the benefits, costs, extent of deployment, and lessons learned about using ITS in work zones.
  • NCHRP Report 560: Guide to Contracting ITS Projects - This report provides guidance on the procurement of ITS and highlights best practices and recommends contracting strategies and contract types, terms, and conditions for ITS development, integration, system acceptance, warranty, maintenance, and upgrade.
  • Intelligent Transportation Systems in Work Zones: A Case Study. Work Zone Travel Time System - Reducing Congestion with the Use of a Traffic Management Contract Incentive During the Reconstruction of Arizona State Route 68 (FHWA-HOP-04-032) (2004) (HTML, PDF, 283KB)
  • Intelligent Transportation Systems in Work Zones: A Case Study. Dynamic Lane Merge System - Reducing Aggressive Driving and Optimizing Throughput at Work Zone Merges in Michigan (FHWA-HOP-04-033) (2004) (HTML, PDF, 243KB)
  • Intelligent Transportation Systems in Work Zones: A Case Study. Real-Time Work Zone Traffic Control System - Using an Automated Traffic Information System to Reduce Congestion and Improve Safety During Reconstruction of the I-55 Lake Springfield Bridge in Illinois (FHWA-HOP-04-018) (2004) (HTML, PDF, 221KB)
  • Informed Motorists, Fewer Crashes: Using Intelligent Transportation Systems in Work Zones (FHWA-OP-01-043) (2001) (HTML, PDF, 38K) This brochure examines the safety and mobility benefits using ITS in work zones.
  • Intelligent Transportation Systems in Work Zones: A Case Study. Work Zone Traffic and Incident Management System - Keeping Traffic Moving During Reconstruction of the Big I, a Major Interstate-Interstate Interchange in Albuquerque (FHWA-OP-04-072) (2004) (HTML, PDF, 127KB)
  • Intelligent Transportation Systems in Work Zones: A Cross-Cutting Study (FHWA-OP-02-025) (2002) (HTML, PDF, 2.75MB) Examination of real-world experiences with ITS in work zones from four locations as well as information on other work zone ITS technologies.
  • ITS/Operations Resource Guide 2008 - A comprehensive listing of over 500 documents, web sites, training courses, software tools, and points of contact related to ITS.
  • Portable Changeable Message Sign (PCMS) Handbook - This handbook presents basic guidelines for the use of PCMS (FHWA-RD-03-066).

Performance Measurement

Public Information and Outreach

  • Work Zone Public Information and Outreach Strategies (HTML, PDF 3.4MB) - This document provides tips, examples, and practices on designing a public information and outreach campaign for work zones and offers a variety of strategies that can be used in a campaign.
  • FHWA Focus State Initiative: Developing Communication and Outreach Strategies for Work Zones - Workshop Proceedings (HTML, Word, 294KB)
  • Assessing Public Inconvenience in Highway Work Zones (Oregon DOT, June 2002) - Final Report (PDF, 1.05MB) / Abstract (HTML)
  • Work Zone Safety Brochures - produced by the FHWA Office of Safety
    • Work Zone Safety for Drivers (HTML, PDF 304KB)
    • Trucking Safely Through Work Zones (HTML, PDF 160KB)

Regulation and Policy

  • Work Zone Impacts Assessment: An Approach to Assess and Manage Work Zone Safety and Mobility Impacts of Road Projects (HTML, PDF 10MB) - This document presents a general approach for work zone impacts assessment and provides examples of how agencies are currently assessing and managing work zone impacts, as well as an overview of different traffic analysis tools that can be helpful for analysis of work zone impacts.
  • Developing and Implementing Transportation Management Plans for Work Zones (HTML, PDF 1.4MB) - This document provides tips, examples, and practices for developing and implementing work zone transportation management plans (TMPs).
  • Work Zone Public Information and Outreach Strategies (HTML, PDF 3.4MB) - This document provides tips, examples, and practices on designing a public information and outreach campaign for work zones and offers a variety of strategies that can be used in a campaign.
  • Implementing the Rule on Work Zone Safety and Mobility (23 CFR 630 Subpart J) (HTML, PDF, 1.3MB)
  • Rule on Work Zone Safety and Mobility - (Public Roads, January/February 2006) Article
  • FHWA Provides Guidance on Implementing Updated Work Zone Safety and Mobility Rule - (Focus, November 2005) Article

Research

  • Compendium of Work Zone Research, Development, and Technology Transfer Projects - To obtain a copy of the Compendium, contact workzonepubs@fhwa.dot.gov.
  • Dramatically Reducing Highway Construction Project Times: Suggestions for Research (1998) (HTML, PDF, 49K) - Summary of issues and research needs associated with dramatically reducing highway construction project times and the potential for research to help achieve such reductions.
  • National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Work Zone Safety Publications - Database of information and series of reports produced by the National Highway Work Zone Safety Program (NHWZSP) in the areas of standardization, compliance, evaluation, and implementation.

Training

Work Zone & Traffic Analysis/Management
Office of Operations