Road Safety Audits (2004)

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3 CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION Roadway crashes and fatalities in the United States con- tinue to be a major health and safety issue. In 2002, almost 3 million injuries and 42,815 fatalities occurred on U.S. roads. In all, the 6 million crashes in the United States in that year resulted in an estimated $230 billion financial loss (1). Worldwide the estimates of annual road fatalities are in excess of 1 million. Road safety audits (RSAs) and road safety audit reviews (RSARs) are two safety tools that offer promise in reducing roadway crashes and fatalities. Globally, these tools have been in safety practice since the 1980s and are beginning to emerge as proactive safety tools in the United States. PURPOSE AND METHODOLOGY This synthesis provides a review of the state of the practice of RSA applications for state departments of transportation (DOTs) in the United States and provincial transportation agencies in Canada. Also included are summaries of some local agency approaches to the use of these tools in com- prehensive safety programs. The purpose of this synthesis is to describe RSA and RSAR processes and to summarize their current usage. Emphasis is placed on applications in North America. However, this document also discusses in- ternational practice, because RSAs were first introduced in Great Britain more than 20 years ago, and have been exten- sively applied in New Zealand and Australia since the early 1990s. In those countries, the extent of application and the level of maturity of usage exceed that of the United States. Practices are evolving in the United States as more states receive training and are beginning to implement audit pro- grams. It is anticipated that this document will promote in- creased use of RSAs and RSARs and, as a result of the in- creased use, a reduction in roadway crashes and fatalities. The state of practice was developed based on the fol- lowing: • • • • • • A 2003 survey of state DOTs and Canadian provinces, State and local agency practices, Training for state DOTs sponsored by the FHWA and the National Highway Institute (NHI), Local agency training experiences, International practices, and Literature and personal contacts. The survey questionnaire is contained in Appendix A. A list of the 38 states and 6 governmental agencies in Canada that responded to the survey is included in Appendix B. International practices are described to illustrate the global acceptance of RSA practices and advancements that have been made worldwide. Recent progress in countries that have a long history of applying RSAs is highlighted. Examples of other countries where RSA and RSAR prac- tices are in the initial stages are provided. The most current information on these international practices was obtained from presentations delivered at an international forum on RSAs sponsored by the Institute of Highways and Trans- portation (IHT) held in London, England, in October 2003. Chapter four provides an update on international appli- cations. Included in that chapter are survey inputs from Canadian cities and provinces that also responded to the DOT survey. The final chapter contains a summary of key issues associated with these safety tools. References, a bib- liography, and appendixes conclude the report. The appen- dices include the synthesis DOT survey, sample RSA and RSAR reports, sample RSA and RSAR checklists, and an example of a DOT RSA program. INTERNATIONAL DEFINITION OF ROAD SAFETY AUDITS AND U.S. DEFINITION OF ROAD SAFETY AUDIT REVIEWS The internationally accepted definition of an RSA as used in this synthesis is as follows: “An RSA is a formal and in- dependent safety performance review of a road transporta- tion project by an experienced team of safety specialists, addressing the safety of all road users” (2). An RSAR is de- fined as “an evaluation of an existing roadway section by an independent team, again focusing solely upon safety issues” (3). Internationally, this distinction between the evaluation of a plan and the evaluation of a roadway already open to traf- fic is becoming more pronounced. Terms such as RSAR, road infrastructure assessment, road review, roadway as- sessment, and roadway inspection have been used to differ- entiate an RSAR of an existing roadway from an RSA of a plan. In 1996, an FHWA-sponsored U.S. scanning tour visited Australia and New Zealand to investigate their applications of RSAs and to determine if that tool would have added value in advancing U.S. safety practices. The proactive RSA practice and its wide acceptance were recognized by the team as adding value to road safety practices. It is hoped that this synthesis will continue to advance U.S. ac- ceptance and implementation of both safety tools.

4 CLARIFYING EXISTING U.S. SAFETY PRACTICE There is a great deal of confusion and misunderstanding regarding these proactive tools and existing safety prac- tices. Although most state DOTs currently include some elements of these tools, implementation of the RSA and RSAR processes to achieve full benefit is not occurring. The following are typical first reactions to the application of the process to an audit of a plan and an audit of an exist- ing roadway. • • • • • “We already do RSAs and RSARs.” The perception of many individuals involved with roadway safety in the United States is that they are already applying RSA processes in their work. How- ever, most are not. Although most DOTs are conduct- ing comprehensive project scoping reviews that in- clude many of the aspects of the RSA or RSAR process, those scoping reviews do not involve re- view examinations by an independent team focus- ing solely on safety. A common response from in- dividuals who have received RSA and RSAR training has been that those two tools are best used in the early stages of a project. Another primary re- sponse to the training is that the RSA would provide excellent input into project scoping and preliminary project design. “We already do RSARs.” Most state DOTs have a reactive component in their safety programs that focuses on high-crash locations. Although these analyses may include evaluations and input from several people, they do not constitute an RSAR. An RSAR is not a reactive tool drawing con- clusions from crash histories. Instead, it focuses on safety issues associated with the roadway, all road users (e.g., drivers, pedestrians young and old, and bicyclists), operating under all environmental condi- tions (e.g., day versus night and wet versus dry), to identify the safety issues associated with the existing facility. It includes evaluations from an independent team and results in a formal report. Iowa, New York, and South Dakota are three DOTs leading RSAR ac- tivities. Iowa and New York have incorporated RSARs into their resurfacing, restoration, and reha- bilitation/resurfacing, restoration, rehabilitation, and reconstruction (3R/4R) programs. U.S. ROAD SAFETY AUDIT AND ROAD SAFETY AUDIT REVIEW CONCERNS There are many implementation issues identified by state DOTs and local agencies in the United States. First and foremost is a general concern about the rigidity of the process as practiced internationally. Second is a concern about how best to integrate the audit approach into existing safety practices and programs. Related are concerns about liability, audit process and procedures, identifying projects to audit, and auditor skills and training. These issues and the details associated with conducting both RSAs and RSARs are addressed in chapters two and three. Chapter two provides a detailed discussion of the RSA and RSAR process. An overview of the survey results from state DOTs in the United States is presented in chapter three. A section focusing on local agency issues concludes that chapter. A more complete focus on local safety tools is pro- vided in NCHRP Synthesis of Highway Practice 321, published in 2003 (4). U.S. ROAD SAFETY AUDIT AND ROAD SAFETY AUDIT REVIEW STATUS IN 2003 The application of RSAs and RSARs is in its infancy in the United States, with only a few states having safety pro- grams that include either an RSA or RSAR component. However, as a result of training, more states appear to be willing to try these approaches to enhance safety. In Can- ada, RSAs are being evaluated for use in value engineering processes and in design-build projects. The philosophy behind RSAs and RSARs is to be pro- active in independently evaluating safety issues and rec- ommending alternative applications or technologies where appropriate. At the completion of the audit process comes the implementation of selected alternatives to improve the safety of the roadway and then to evaluate the benefits as- sociated with those safety improvements. FUTURE ISSUES OF ROAD SAFETY AUDIT AND ROAD SAFETY AUDIT REVIEWS The application of RSAs is in its earliest stages in the United States. To advance and expand the application of the concept and to enhance safety benefits the following activities are needed: Training programs should be continued to introduce more state DOT personnel to RSA practices and how these safety tools can be applied. A compendium of best practices could be developed and disseminated to state DOTs, cities, and local road agencies. Local transportation assistance program (LTAP) centers or technology transfer (T2) centers could assist in the distribution of this information. RSA training courses might be developed to focus on urban applications such as at intersections or on RSA and RSAR aspects of access management.

5 • A study is needed to establish the benefits of audits based on U.S. practice. This could include a quantitative evaluation to establish the economic benefits of audits. • A forum on RSA and RSAR to advance U.S. practice could be held. Time, training, and a record of successful applications will be the keys to making RSAs and RSARs a common safety practice in the United States. Agencies can stay up to date on RSA and RSAR activities by visiting the website www.roadwaysafetyaudits.org.