Communication Product Updates
Recent Publications
Researchers, academicians, and managers alike should find this department useful. Whether you're looking for information on cathodic protection of bridges, human factors guidelines for automated highway systems, or minimum retroreflectivity requirements for traffic signs, this may be the place for you.
Chances are that these brief descriptions of reports recently published by the Federal Highway Administration's (FHWA) Office of Research, Development, and Technology, may fit your needs. All the publications are available from the National Technical Information Service (NTIS). In some cases, limited copies of the publications are available from the Research and Technology (R&T) Report Center.
Please Note: Contact NTIS for current pricing at www.ntis.gov or at Telephone: (703) 605-6000.
When ordering from NTIS, include the NTIS PB number (or publication number) and the publication title. You may also visit the NTIS Web site at www.ntis.gov to order publications online. For customers outside the United States, Canada, and Mexico, the cost is double the listed price. Address requests to:
National Technical Information Service
5285 Port Royal Road
Springfield, VA 22161
Telephone: (703) 605-6000
Requests for items available from the R&T Report Center should be addressed to:
Federal Highway Administration
RD&T Report Center, HRTS
9701 Philadelphia Court, Unit Q
Lanham, MD 20706
Telephone: (301) 577-0906
1995 Honda Accord LX Broadside Collision With a Narrow Fixed Object: FOIL Test Number 98S007
Publication No. FHWA-RD-99-024
This report describes the test procedures, setup, and results from the last of three broadside crash tests conducted at FHWA's Federal Outdoor Impact Laboratory (FOIL) located at the Turner-Fairbank Highway Research Center (TFHRC) in McLean, Va. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) enlisted FHWA to aid in developing laboratory test procedures to be used in an amended version of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 201. Four previous crash tests with a Honda Accord LX and the FOIL 300K instrumented rigid pole (test numbers 97S003, 97S004, 97S005, and 97S006) produced a test methodology for conducting broadside vehicle crash tests of dynamic side-impact head protection systems (e.g., air bags).
Once the test procedures were established, these three additional broadside crash tests were conducted to demonstrate the practicality and feasibility of the new test procedures. The three vehicles used for these tests were a 1994 Ford Explorer XLT, a 1994 Toyota pickup truck, and a 1995 Honda Accord LX (this test). This test also included investigating child occupant kinematics. A dummy representing a 6-year-old child was placed in the rear seat of the struck side of the vehicle.
The NTIS number is PB99-130312; the cost is $33 for a paper copy or $17 for the report on microfiche.
1994 Toyota Pickup Broadside Collision With a Narrow Fixed Object: FOIL Test Number 98S006
Publication No. FHWA-RD-98-151
This report contains the test procedures, setup, and results from the second of three broadside crash tests conducted at FHWA's FOIL. The three vehicles used for these tests were a 1994 Ford Explorer XLT, a 1994 Toyota pickup truck (this report), and a 1995 Honda Accord LX.
The NTIS number is PB99-130304; the cost is $29.50 for a paper copy or $12 for the report on microfiche.
1994 Ford Explorer XLT Broadside Collision With a Narrow Fixed Object: FOIL Test Number 98S005
Publication No. FHWA-RD-98-150
This report contains the test procedures, setup, and results from the first of three broadside crash tests conducted at FHWA's FOIL. The three vehicles used for these tests were a 1994 Ford Explorer XLT (this report), a 1994 Toyota pickup truck, and a 1995 Honda Accord LX.
The NTIS number is PB99-130296; the cost is $29.50 for a paper copy or $12 for the report on microfiche.
Accident Models for Two-Lane Rural Roads: Segments and Intersections
Publication No. FHWA-RD-98-133
This report describes the collection, analysis, and modeling of accident and roadway data pertaining to segments and intersections on rural roads in Minnesota (1985-1989) and Washington state (1993-1995). The segments are on two-lane roads, and the intersections are three- and four-legged intersections of such roads, which are stop-controlled on the minor legs. Data were acquired from the highway safety information system, photologs, construction plans, and state databases. More than 1,300 segments and more than 700 intersections are included in the final samples on which the modeling is based. Variables collected include accident counts, traffic exposure, surface and shoulder width, roadside hazard rating, number of driveways, channelization, horizontal and vertical alignments, intersection angles, speed limits, and commercial traffic percentage.
Researchers developed models of Poisson type, negative binomial type, and extended negative binomial type and applied advanced statistical techniques to assess the explanatory value of the models in the presence of Poisson randomness and overdispersion.
The NTIS number is PB99-142713; the cost is $44 for a paper copy or $17 for the report on microfiche.
A New Development Length Equation for Pretensioned Strands in Bridge Beams and Piles
Publication No. FHWA-RD-98-116
In 1988, FHWA issued a memorandum that outlawed the use of 15.2-mm- (0.6-in-) diameter strands, which restricted the spacing of strands, and applied a multiplier to the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials' (AASHTO) development length equation. This memo initiated considerable research on the subject of bond of pretensioned strands in concrete. Forty-one research studies have been undertaken since 1988 to clarify the issues in the memo.
One of the studies initiated was a large research study conducted at FHWA's Structures Laboratory at TFHRC. Phase I of the study involved 50 rectangular prestressed concrete specimens, while Phase II involved 64 members - 32 AASHTO Type II prestressed concrete I-beams and 32 prestressed concrete sub-deck panels. Half of these members for both phases contained uncoated strands, while the other half contained epoxy-coated strands. Only the results from the members containing uncoated strands in rectangular specimens and beams were discussed in this report.
The NTIS number is PB99-146664; the cost is $36 for a paper copy or $17 for the report on microfiche.
Safety Performance Testing of a Modified Oregon Multidirectional Slip-Base Sign Support: FOIL Test Numbers 98F002 and 98F004
Publication No. FHWA-RD-98-111
This report contains the test procedures, setup, and results from two crash tests performed at FHWA's FOIL. The objective of these tests was to evaluate the safety performance of a small sign support system provided by the Oregon DOT and to provide FHWA finite element model simulation engineers with data on the performance of a slip-base sign support. Previous tests on large Oregon slip-base sign supports conducted at FOIL demonstrated an improvement in safety performance by increasing the previous bolt-notch angle from 60 degrees to 90 degrees. The change was implemented into a small slip-base sign support design and was tested at FOIL. This report documents the results from two crash tests using the FOIL bogie vehicle and Oregon DOT's 3X3 TBB sign support.
The NTIS number is PB99-129959; the cost is $27 for a paper copy or $12 for the report on microfiche.
Performance of Continuously Reinforced Concrete Pavements, Volume V: Maintenance and Repair of CRC Pavements
Publication No. FHWA-RD-98-101
This report is one of a series of reports prepared as part of a national pooled-fund study administered by FHWA and aimed at updating the state of the art of the design, construction, maintenance, and rehabilitation of continuously reinforced concrete (CRC) pavements. This report is the fifth in a series and presents the results related to CRC pavement distress and procedures for repair of CRC pavements. Since the most troublesome problems with CRC pavements are punchout distresses and distresses associated with steel rupture, this report emphasizes the repairs of these distresses.
The NTIS number is PB99-128308; the cost is $29.50 for a paper copy or $12 for the report on microfiche.
Atlanta NAVIGATOR Case Study
Publication No. FHWA-RD-98-099
The Atlanta metropolitan region was the location of one of the most ambitious Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) deployments in the United States. The Atlanta Centennial Olympic Games and Paralympic Games created a focus for these projects. All of the systems were to be brought online in time for the Olympic Games. This report presents the findings of the NAVIGATOR Case Study and documents the lessons learned from the Atlanta ITS deployment experience to improve other ITS deployments in the future. The case study focuses on the institutional, programmatic, and technical issues and opportunities from planning and implementing the ITS deployment in Atlanta.
The NTIS number is PB99-146656; the cost is $41 for a paper copy or $17 for the report on microfiche.
Modeling Intersection Crash Counts and Traffic Volume
Publication No. FHWA-RD-98-096
This research explores the feasibility of modeling crash counts at intersections with the use of available exposure measures. The basic purpose of exposure is to serve as a size factor to allow comparison of crash counts among populations of different sizes. In the context of highway crash studies, at first glance, vehicle-miles of travel (VMT) appears to be a natural exposure measure. However, VMT is closely related to traffic density and this raises doubts as to whether it can serve the intended purpose of an exposure measure.
Data from four-leg signalized intersections in Washtenaw County, Michigan, and California and Minnesota were used in this study. Traffic volumes on the approaches are the routinely available exposure measure. Researchers noted that in these data sets, the same values of traffic volume were often carried over several intersections. Using such values of traffic volume as measures of exposure results in correlations between errors of the independent variables, which violates the requirements of standard statistical procedures.
The NTIS number is PB99-104390; the cost is $41 for a paper copy or $17 for the report on microfiche.
1996 Atlanta Centennial Olympic Games and Paralympic Games Event Study
Publication No. FHWA-RD-97-107
This report presents the findings of the 1996 Olympic and Paralympic Games Events Study - a compilation of findings of system performance, benefits realized, and lessons learned during their operations over the events period. The study assessed the performance of the various Travel Demand Management (TDM) plans employed for Olympic Games traffic management. This intermodal system performance and benefits assessment also presents recommendations for other major special event host cities and ITS deployments, based on the lessons learned from the Atlanta Centennial Olympic Games transportation operations.
The NTIS number is PB99-142432; the cost is $58 for a paper copy or $23 for the report on microfiche.