September/October 2004 · Vol. 68 · No. 2

September/October 2004

Communication Product Updates
Compiled by Zac Ellis of FHWA's Office of Research and Technology Services

Below are brief descriptions of products recently published online by the Federal Highway Administration's (FHWA) Office of Research, Development, and Technology. Some of the publications also may be available from the National Technical Information Service (NTIS). In some cases, limited copies are available from the Research and Technology (R&T) Product Distribution Center.

When ordering from NTIS, include the NTIS publication number (PB number) and the publication title. You also may visit the NTIS Web site at www.ntis.gov to order publications online. Call NTIS for current prices. For customers outside the United States, Canada, and Mexico, the cost is usually double the listed price. Address requests to:

National Technical Information Service
5285 Port Royal Road
Springfield, VA 22161
Telephone: 703–605–6000
Toll-free number: 800–553–NTIS (6847)

Address requests for items available from the R&T Product Distribution Center to:

R&T Product Distribution Center, HRTS-03
Federal Highway Administration
9701 Philadelphia Court, Unit Q
Lanham, MD 20706
Telephone: 301–577–0818
Fax: 301–577–1421

For more information on research and technology publications from FHWA, visit the Turner-Fairbank Highway Research Center's (TFHRC) Web site at www.tfhrc.gov, FHWA's Web site at www.fhwa.dot.gov, the National Transportation Library's Web site at http://ntl.bts.gov, or the OneDOT information network at http://dotlibrary.dot.gov.

Incremental Costs and Performance Benefits of Various Features of Concrete Pavements Publication No. FHWA-HRT-04-044

This TechBrief presents a methodology for quickly assessing the relative costs and benefits of incorporating various design features into portland cement concrete (PCC) pavements. The methodology has been incorporated into an analytical software tool that pavement design engineers can use to investigate the cost-versus-performance tradeoffs associated with selecting different features during the PCC pavement design process. Although the software is not intended to provide absolute answers on the effects of different design features, it can provide insight into general performance and cost trends associated with using those features.

The document discusses why design features- including dowel bars, tied shoulders, and drainable bases-that can be added to PCC pavement designs to improve overall performance by increasing serviceability or extending service life also can sometimes increase the initial cost of the design significantly. Taking into account that current practices do not always consider the tradeoffs between performance benefits and costs, this publication points out that adding more features to the design may produce increasingly small performance gains while raising the final cost of the pavement structure.

A Review of Pedestrian Safety Research in The United States and Abroad Publication No. FHWA-RD-03-042

This report provides an overview of research studies on pedestrian safety in the United States and in other countries. Readers will find information on pedestrian crash characteristics, measures of pedestrian exposure and hazard, and the effects of specific roadway features on pedestrian safety. Such features include crosswalks and alternative crossing treatments, signalization, signage, pedestrian refuge islands, provisions for pedestrians with disabilities, bus stop locations, school crossing measures, reflectorization and conspicuity, grade-separated crossings, traffic calming measures, and sidewalks and paths. Educational and enforcement programs related to pedestrians also are discussed.

The report builds on two earlier reports. The most recent is Synthesis of Safety Research: Pedestrians (FHWA-SA-91-034), by C.V. Zegeer, published in August 1991. The earlier work is Chapter 16 from "Pedestrian Ways" by R.C. Pfefer, A. Sorton, J. Fegan, and M.J. Rosenbaum, published by FHWA in Synthesis of Safety Research Related to Traffic Control and Roadway Elements (from Volume 2, December 1982). The updated report includes results from numerous domestic and foreign studies on pedestrian safety-including those from Australia, Canada, the Netherlands, Sweden, and the United Kingdom-that are available online at www.walkinginfo.org/rd/international.htm.

Other Articles in this issue:

Taking the High Road

The Space Between

Designing Tomorrow's Pavements

Learning from the 2003 Blackout

Rustic Pavements

I-95 Shutdown—Coordinating Transportation and Emergency Response

Traffic Safety Information Systems

Preventing Corrosion in Steel Bridges

The Uncertainty of Forecasts

Testing Truncated Domes

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September/October 2004 · Vol. 68 · No. 2