Journal of Traffic Control Device Research

Foreword

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Editor's Welcome

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The Steady Beacon

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Tucson BikeHAWK, Adapting the Pedestrian Hybrid Beacon to Assist Bicyclists in Crossing Arterial Streets

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The Pedestrian Hybrid Beacon (PHB) or HAWK has been successfully used by communities around the nation to facilitate safe, convenient crossings of busy, high-speed roadways by pedestrians since its inclusion in the 2009 edition of the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD). While not excluding their use, standard PHBs have never explicitly accommodated another large user group in need of the same facilitation to cross arterials: bicyclists. In 2012, the City of Tucson began efforts to modify select PHBs to allow for the clear and safe crossing of both user groups.

Starting in the 1980s, the City of Tucson shifted its focus from simply providing bike lanes along arterial and collector roadways to identifying existing residential streets that could be enhanced to provide a network of calm, low-stress bikeways. Having identified these routes (now termed bike boulevards), the city endeavored to improve this network by reducing automobile traffic, encouraging bicyclist use, and most critically, addressing how to safely and conveniently cross major streets where they intersect these bike boulevards.

Human Factors Evaluation Methods For Traffic Control Devices

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The U S Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) outlines the steps in a process for requesting and conducting experimentations for new traffic control devices (TCDs). This process should contain a detailed research plan to include, if appropriate, both before and after studies as well as quantitative data describing the performance of the experimental device. However, no instruction or guidance is provided in the MUTCD with regard to specific evaluation techniques.

Due to the critical role of human factors in TCD design and effectiveness, it is essential that evaluation techniques be properly conducted and be sensitive to road user capabilities and limitations.

Field Evaluation of Full-Matrix Color Changeable Message Signs

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As technology and capabilities in Changeable Message Signs (CMSs) have evolved, traffic engineers are now able to install electronic signs with high resolution and can closely mimic static traffic signs. The MUTCD allows for the use of electronic signs; however, there remains a need to understand the types of messages, font styles, and backgrounds that are most effective to communicate information. The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) through the Traffic Management Center (TMC) Pooled Fund Study (PFS) sponsored a project to develop recommendations for considerations related to the use of Color CMSs. This paper documents the field evaluation procedures and results portion of the project.

Cover and Full PDF

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