Executive Summary
“Illinois has continued to see a downward trend in traffic-related fatal crashes, in particular for roadway departure crashes. Key to this success has been Illinois’ multi-disciplined approach to implement corridor and systematic improvements. This has entailed retrofitting of milled rumble strips, upgrading guardrail, and installing median cable rail on Illinois freeways. Also, IDOT has funded an Illinois State Police Motorcycle Patrol program to implement strict speed enforcement on Illinois freeways to further reduce roadway departure crashes related to speed. On rural two-lane roads, increased use of chevron signs to mark sharp curves and widening of paved shoulders at selected locations, especially curves have been cost-effective safety measures.”
Milton R. Sees, Secretary
Illinois Department of Transportation
Of the more than 42,000 people killed on our nation’s highways annually, over 25,000—almost 60 percent—, died in crashes caused when their vehicles veered from the lane. In some cases, the vehicle crossed the centerline and was involved in a head-on crash or opposite direction sideswipe. In others, the vehicle left the roadway to roll over or impact one or more natural or man-made objects, such as trees, utility poles, bridge walls, embankments, or guardrails.
And even though the rate of highway deaths has continued to decrease over the past two decades, the number of highway fatalities in the United States has remained steady. The highway fatality rate has gone down from over 2.76 fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled in 1982 to 1.41 in 2006. However, during that same period, the number of fatalities has fluctuated primarily within a range of 40,000 to 45,000 deaths per year.
To address these devastating statistics, members of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO), by resolution of their Board of Directors in October 2007, embarked on a plan to cut fatalities by half within two decades, with an ultimate goal of zero deaths on our nation’s highways. To accomplish this goal, we need to reduce the number of traffic fatalities by approximately 1,000 per year.
Achieving this bold goal requires solutions related to all aspects of the transportation system, including planning, design, construction, maintenance, and operations. In addition, legislating and enforcing transportation safety laws, educating drivers of laws and safe driving techniques, improving and coordinating emergency medical services, and improving vehicle technology will also contribute to a reduction in fatalities. However, state DOTs can have an immediate impact on fatal and injury crash reduction through low-cost, quick implementation, highway infrastructure improvements—and further still, by focusing a concerted effort on lane-departure crashes, which are such a substantial portion of all fatal crashes. Our highway system must be engineered, operated, and maintained to help prevent crashes and to minimize the consequences and severity of those that do occur.
Several states have already recognized the benefits of specifically addressing lane-departure crashes and have taken countermeasures to prevent them. This report focuses on how these state DOTs have made simple safety improvements to prevent lane and roadway departures, minimize the likelihood of a crash when a departure occurs, and reduce the severity of crashes.
Colorado's Hazard Elimination and Safety Program
Since the majority of Colorado’s fatal lane departure crashes occur on rural roadways, Colorado has developed a new methodology for identifying locations with potential for crash reduction—the Hazard Elimination and Safety (HES) Program—and has been applying it to all of their projects. Focus areas include preventing vehicles from leaving the roadway, removing roadside obstacles, and reducing intersection crashes. The significant reduction in rural fatal crashes in Colorado is a result of identifying crashes that are susceptible to correction in a cost-effective manner and applying the proper fix to that crash type.
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