Integrating Innovative Ideas into Daily Traffic Engineering - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

The New Normal – Integrating Innovative Ideas into Daily Traffic Engineering

November 2015

Adding New Elements To Our Work

• Bike Infrastructure
• Strengthening Traffic Safety Program
• Measuring Performance
• Railroad Quiet Zone Waiver

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Bike Infrastructure

Bike Infrastructure

City of Fort Collins is one of only four Platinum Level bicycle friendly communities in the country Goal of comfortable, convenient and safe bicycling intended to increase ridership Focus on infrastructure

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What We’re Implementing and How It’s Working Buffered/protected bike lanes Bike boxes Green markings Bike signals Bike detection ..and more

Low Stress Bike Network

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• Leveraging overlay program
• Takes planning and coordination
• Significant staff/crew time
• Not nominal cost
• Maintenance impact unknown

Bike Detection

• Video detection
• Differentiates between

bicyclists and motorists

• Provides more time for

bikes to cross

• Bike notification lights

Green Markings

• Very visible and conspicuous
• Thermoplastic or Methylmethacrylate (MMA)
• Installation and maintenance challenges

Green Markings

• Popular with cycling community but no documented

increased ridership

• Working on guidance to determine appropriate locations

Bike Crashes in Fort Collins

113 102 106 103 118 124 107 141 142 151 150 159 180 178 139 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200

Year

Types of Bike Crashes 80% of all bike crashes

• ccur at intersections or

driveways.

30% of all bike crashes

involve wrong way riding Only 11% of all crashes involve sideswipe/rear end

Right Angle 54% Approach 15% Overtaking 14% Sideswipe 8% Parking 3% Rearend 3% Head On 1% Other 2%

Current Bike Implementations

Right Angle 54% Approach 15% Overtaking 14% Sideswipe 8% Parking 3% Rearend 3% Head On 1% Other 2%

Bike Box Travel Buffer Parking Buffer Travel Buffer

What is Safety?

Perceived Safety

• Protected bike lanes
• Buffers
• Green paint
• Sense of belonging

Actual Safety

• Minimize

intersection crashes

• Education for

cyclists and drivers

• Reduce sidewalk

riding

Needed to encourage more riders Needed to keep riders safe

Take Aways

• Committed to improving bike infrastructure and

bicyclist safety

• Traffic engineering and bicycle advocacy aren’t

always aligned.

• Challenges addressing most common crash types
• Installation and maintenance of new treatments is a

work in progress

• Staff time and resources stretched - Competing

priorities

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Traffic Safety Program

Traffic Safety: It Begins with Good Data

• Electronic crash reports
• Read narrative and witness

statements

• Enter them into a database
• Public/Private, Injury Severity,

Intersection/Mid-Block

• Crash Types

What are We Doing?

• Annual Safety Report
• Monitor Trends
• I.D. City-Wide Crash Patterns
• Identify High Crash Locations

Fcgov.com/traffic/safetysummary.php

What are We Doing?

• Highway Safety Manual Approach
• CDOT Safety Performance Functions
• CDOT Level of Service of Safety

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Safety Audits (Diagnosis)

• Review crash reports and other data (volumes etc.)
• Collision Diagrams
• Pattern Recognition Algorithms
• Field Review
• Traffic Control/Signs/Markings
• Function/Operations
• Outside Input
• Citizens, Schools, Police
• Identify potential improvements

Utilizing GIS with Data

Interesting Finds

Interesting Finds

Dilemma Zone Protection

Signal Offset Adjustments Advanced Detection

How are We Doing?

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1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

Total Crashes

100 200 300 400 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

Injury Crashes

2007 – 2014

• Injury Crashes down 14%
• Total Crashes up 13%
• VMT Increased 2%

Take Aways

• CDOT SPFs are a better fit
• Looking beyond high crash locations
• Low cost safety improvements can make a big difference
• Worthwhile to dig deeper

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Bluetooth Performance Data

Bluetooth Performance Data

• Installed 31 bluetooth readers at

major intersections

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Individual Pairs

Smoothed Travel Time Curve

Uses: University Impact

Uses: Long Term Construction Impact

Uses: Construction Impact by Time of Day

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Uses: Construction Impact by Time of Day

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Uses: Spot Improvements

Uses: Spot Improvements

Daily Variation

Take Aways

• You can’t fix what you don’t know
• Traditional methods of modeling performance may

not be calibrated very well

• Evolving technology

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Railroad Quiet Zones

Railroad Quiet Zones

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A unique urban environment with RR tracks in the center of the street

Mason Corridor Risk Indices

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• Nationwide Significant Risk Threshold – 14,347
• Mason Risk Index with Horn – 30,930
• Mason Quiet Zone Risk Index – 51,592

Train Speed on Mason in the FRA Inventory – 49 mph Calculated 95th% Train Speed – 22 mph

Mason Corridor Risk Indices

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From the Train Horn Rule:

"FRA rates collisions that occur at train speeds in excess of 25 mph as an Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) level 5 ($2,287,500) and injuries that result from collisions involving trains traveling under 25 mph as an AIS level 2 ($46,500). About half of grade crossing collisions occur at speeds greater than 25 mph. Therefore, FRA estimates that the value of preventing the average injury resulting from a grade crossing collision is $1,167,000 (the average of an AIS-5 injury and an AIS-2 injury).”

Mason Corridor Risk Indices

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From the Train Horn Rule:

"FRA rates collisions that occur at train speeds in excess of 25 mph as an Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) level 5 ($2,287,500) and injuries that result from collisions involving trains traveling under 25 mph as an AIS level 2 ($46,500). About half of grade crossing collisions occur at speeds greater than 25 mph. Therefore, FRA estimates that the value of preventing the average injury resulting from a grade crossing collision is $1,167,000 (the average of an AIS-5 injury and an AIS-2 injury).”

Question: What cost should be used for an injury crash

• n a corridor where trains travel at less than 25 mph?

*Risk Index for intersections using FRA Train Horn Rule methodology and

crash cost estimates assuming $46,500 per injury crash at signalized intersections versus $1,167,000 per injury crash at grade crossings.

Location Risk Index* Injury Crashes Fatal Crashes

Nationwide Significant Risk Threshold 14,347 Mason Grade Crossing Risk Index with Horn 5,695 1 injury crash every 117 years 1 fatal crash every 711 years Mason Grade Crossing Quiet Zone Risk Index 6,799 1 injury crash every 107 years 1 fatal crash every 650 years Average Signalized Intersection in FC 191,935 3.2 injury crashes per year 1 fatal crash every 67 years

Location Risk Index* Injury Crashes Fatal Crashes

Nationwide Significant Risk Threshold 14,347 Mason Grade Crossing Risk Index with Horn 5,695 1 injury crash every 117 years 1 fatal crash every 711 years Mason Grade Crossing Quiet Zone Risk Index 6,799 1 injury crash every 107 years 1 fatal crash every 650 years Average Signalized Intersection in FC 191,935 3.2 injury crashes per year 1 fatal crash every 67 years

Risk Indices

Take Aways

• Train horn rule needs work
• Does not adequately consider train speeds
• Safety isn’t black and white
• May make quiet zones more realistic where train speeds

are low

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Moving Forward

We’ve chosen a cautiously innovative approach

• “Safety” is complicated
• Good data is critical
• Many new opportunties
• Prioritization is challenging

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Thank You!

City of Fort Collins Traffic Operations Department 970-221-6630 Joe Olson jolson@fcgov.com Martina Wilkinson mwilkinson@fcgov.com

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