Operations WARNING OVERHEIGHT VEHICLES AHEAD Todd Trautz on - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Pennsylvania’s Experience

with

OVERHEIGHT VEHICLE-BRIDGE IMPACTS (BRIDGE STRIKES) December 18, 2018

Todd Trautz on behalf of the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, Bureau of Maintenance and Operations

CTSO Working Group on Freight Operations

WARNING OVERHEIGHT VEHICLES AHEAD

Agenda

 Background of PennDOT’s Efforts  Research & Outreach  Preventative Strategies  Implementation  Roundtable Discussion

Background

 Project purpose: Develop an

educational/enforcement plan that targets at risk haulers

 Methodology:

 National best practice research  Similar DOT Outreach  Baseline PA’s bridge strikes  Preventative Strategies

 Conducted Summer 2016

Background

 Bridge-vehicle impacts (bridge strikes)

The Can Opener Bridge

 Overheight Vehicle -2010 Washington County,

Kammer Interchange – McIlvaine Road over I-70

Background

Background

 More common… scrapes and gouges

Landis Valley Road over US 222 Manheim Township, PA December 18, 2015 Estimated Cost to Repair: $565 K Estimated Economic Cost: $8.5 M

Background

 Impacts to traffic

 Delays  Road User Liquidated

Damages

 On-going impacts

Background

 PennDOT Project Goals:

 Develop a Best Practices Report to help reduce the

number of bridge strikes throughout the Commonwealth

 Develop Public Materials to help improve awareness

• f impacts caused by bridge strikes

 Solicit feedback from stakeholders to improve current

design and policy practices

Current PA Practice

 Current Pennsylvania

Practices:

 No standard after-incident

assessment of prevention devices

 Max height of vehicles

without permit: 13’-6”

 Only require signs for

bridges under 14’-6”

 Low Clearance Signs

Research & Outreach

 National & International Studies

 Not a high priority for many States  FHWA is currently developing(?) a National Best Practices

Guide (NTSB Recommendation H-14-8) that should be available to the public soon.

 National Studies:

 Maryland Study of Overheight Vehicle Collisions with Highway

Bridges (2003)

 New York Bridge Vehicle Impact Report (2011)

 International Studies:

 International Union of Railways (2002)  United Kingdom various Practice Guides (2012)

NTSB Recommendation H-14-8

 Develop a best practices guide that the states can use

to prevent bridge strikes by overheight vehicles. At a minimum, the guide should include (1) a framework for collecting bridge strike data and for ensuring communication of these data among the state agencies responsible for conducting bridge inspections and those responsible for issuing oversize load permits, to support the development of countermeasures; (2) practices for using the data to develop operational changes; (3) methods for evaluating bridge strike countermeasures; and (4) a review of countermeasures that have proven effective in reducing the number of bridge strikes by

• verheight vehicles in the states and in other countries.

Research & Outreach

 Maryland Study of

Overheight Vehicle Collisions with Highway Bridges (2003)

 Peaks observed at 14.5’

(local roads) & 16.5’ (expressways)

 Surveys sent to all 50

states, of those responding 62% viewed bridge strikes as a significant problem and 38% did not.

Research & Outreach

 New York (2011)

 Most comprehensive

study we found.

 New York State

Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) Collision Vulnerability Assessment Procedures

 Perceived cause of

bridge strikes

Research & Outreach

 Neighboring states were contacted to determine

how other programs throughout the nation are addressing the issue

 New York  Ohio

Who should we focus on?

Permitted

Special Haulers

Not Permitted

Cooperate Trucks Owner-Operators Leased Trucks Rental Trucks Contractors Recreational

Not based on actual data.

What types of vehicles are the problem?

35% 11% 54%

PA’s ’05 to ’16 Bridge Strikes

Hydraulic Boom Dump Truck Other Type

Preventative Strategies Correlation of the 5W’s Who What Where When Why

A Bridge Strike Prevention Program

Databases and Analysis Tools

• BMS2
• APRAS
• CDART

Education Engineering Enforcement Infrastructure Data Crash Data

Preventative Strategies

 Regulatory (Enforcement)  Technological (Engineering)  Education and Outreach (Education)

Preventative Strategies

 Regulatory

 Policy updates for PennDOT

including prohibiting consumer GPS units for trucks

 Procedure updates to assess

improvements after bridge strike

• ccurs

 PennDOT programs specifically

geared toward the prevention of bridge strikes

 Additional fines and penalties  Additional liability insurance  Mandatory education for CDL

Preventative Strategies

 Technological

 Over height vehicle

detection systems (OHVDS)

 V2I  Improve infrastructure and

bridge strike crash data

 Truck GPS  Smart Phone Apps  Signage & Warnings

Preventative Strategies

 Education & Outreach

 Public and industry

education

 Public website  Coordination with

• rganizations

 Annual safety course

for truck drivers

Implementation Considerations

 Feasibility

 Costs  Benefits

 Barriers to Implementations  Agency Partnerships  Implementation Actions

Recommendations

 Educational materials

 Drop the Boom Campaign  A-B-C checklist for drivers

 Industry partnerships  511 PA low-clearance

mapping

 Crash reporting and asset

management linkage

 Risk assessment tool

Recommendations

 Tiered response procedures… example:

Tier Damages Agency Evaluation Technological Preventative Measures 1 Minor Scrape or Gouge

• No Evaluation Necessary
• N/A

2 Large Scrape or Gouge

• Evaluate Existing Signing
• Add Signing Or Relocate Existing Signing As Needed

3 Multiple Scrapes or Gouges

• Evaluate Existing Signing
• Add Signing Or Relocate Existing Signing As Needed
• Install Larger Signing
• Consider Installing "Question" Signs
• Consider Installing Pavement Markings
• Consider Installing Bridge Markings
• Consider Installing Overheight Vehicle Detection System

4 Severe Impact or Collision

• Evaluate Existing Signing
• Evaluate Response by

Emergency Crews (Fire, Police & EMS)

• Add Signing Or Relocate Existing Signing As Needed
• Install Larger Signing
• Consider Installing "Question" Signs
• Consider Installing Pavement Markings
• Consider Installing Bridge Markings
• Consider Installing Overheight Vehicle Detection System

5 Multiple Severe Impacts or Collisions

• Evaluate Existing Signing
• Evaluate Response by

Emergency Crews (Fire, Police & EMS)

• Develop Report
• Add Signing Or Relocate Existing Signing As Needed
• Install Larger Signing
• Install Overheight Vehicle Detection System
• Consider Installing "Question" Signs
• Consider Installing Pavement Markings
• Consider Installing Bridge Markings

PennDOT Contact Information

Robert (Bob) J. Pento, P.E.

Manager, Traffic Engineering and Permits PA Department of Transportation Bureau of Maintenance and Operations 400 North Street, 6th Floor Harrisburg PA 17120 Phone: 717-783-6265 Email: RPENTO@pa.gov

Roundtable Discussion

 What are your state’s experiences with bridge

strikes?

 What is your state doing to mitigate the problem?  Is it difficult to track bridge strikes in your state?