DEVELOPMENT OF PRIORITY PROGRAM FOR ROADSIDE HAZARD ABATEMENT

A computerized roadside hazard inventory was developed for the major country roadways in Oakland County, Michigan. The study included the development of a priority program used to rank roadside hazards for removal or protection. This program included various safety factors that have an impact on the relative hazardousness of roadside obstacles and other features that obstruct the clear recovery area: along a roadway. A weighting scheme was used to aggregate the safety factors. The procedure is designed to be applicable to all highway operating agencies, especially those with access to a computer. The entire data file has been computerized in such a way as to be capable of aggregating and summarizing information concerning various roadside hazards. The data system can be updated as necessary, thus it is kept current at all times. The system can be used to rank roadside hazards according to their relative priority factors. It can also be merged with fixed-object accident data and roadway geometric data currently on file to augment the system's analysis capabilities. Finally, multidisciplinary teams can review each of the highest-priority hazards and/or locations and can determine possible countermeasures. (Authors)