The New Normal – Integrating Innovative Ideas into Daily Traffic Engineering November 2015
Adding New Elements To Our Work • Bike Infrastructure • Strengthening Traffic Safety Program • Measuring Performance • Railroad Quiet Zone Waiver 2
Bike Infrastructure 3
Bike Infrastructure City of Fort Collins is one of only four Platinum Level bicycle friendly communities in the country Goal of comfortable, convenient and safe bicycling intended to increase ridership Focus on infrastructure 4
What We’re Implementing and How It’s Working Buffered/protected bike lanes Bike boxes Green markings Bike signals Bike detection ..and more
Low Stress Bike Network • Leveraging overlay program • Takes planning and coordination • Significant staff/crew time • Not nominal cost • Maintenance impact unknown 6
Bike Detection • Video detection • Differentiates between bicyclists and motorists • Provides more time for bikes to cross • Bike notification lights
Green Markings • Very visible and conspicuous • Thermoplastic or Methylmethacrylate (MMA) • Installation and maintenance challenges
Green Markings • Popular with cycling community but no documented increased ridership • Working on guidance to determine appropriate locations
Bike Crashes in Fort Collins 200 180 178 180 141 142 151 150 159 160 139 140 113 102 106 103 118 124 107 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 Year
Types of Bike Crashes Head Other Rearend On 80% of all bike crashes 2% 3% 1% Parking occur at intersections or 3% driveways. Sideswipe 8% 30% of all bike crashes Overtaking involve wrong way riding 14% Right Angle Only 11% of all crashes 54% involve sideswipe/rear end Approach 15%
Current Bike Implementations Travel Buffer Other Head On Rearend 2% 1% 3% Parking 3% Parking Buffer Sideswipe 8% Travel Buffer Overtaking 14% Bike Box Right Angle 54% Approach 15%
What is Safety? Perceived Safety Actual Safety • Protected bike lanes • Minimize • Buffers intersection crashes • Green paint • Education for • Sense of belonging cyclists and drivers • Reduce sidewalk riding Needed to encourage Needed to keep more riders riders safe
Take Aways • Committed to improving bike infrastructure and bicyclist safety • Traffic engineering and bicycle advocacy aren’t always aligned. • Challenges addressing most common crash types • Installation and maintenance of new treatments is a work in progress • Staff time and resources stretched - Competing priorities
Traffic Safety Program 15
Traffic Safety: It Begins with Good Data • Electronic crash reports • Read narrative and witness statements • Enter them into a database • Public/Private, Injury Severity, Intersection/Mid-Block • Crash Types
What are We Doing? • Annual Safety Report • Monitor Trends • I.D. City-Wide Crash Patterns • Identify High Crash Locations Fcgov.com/traffic/safetysummary.php
What are We Doing? • Highway Safety Manual Approach • CDOT Safety Performance Functions • CDOT Level of Service of Safety 18
Safety Audits (Diagnosis) • Review crash reports and other data (volumes etc.) • Collision Diagrams • Pattern Recognition Algorithms • Field Review • Traffic Control/Signs/Markings • Function/Operations • Outside Input • Citizens, Schools, Police • Identify potential improvements
Utilizing GIS with Data
Interesting Finds
Interesting Finds
Dilemma Zone Protection Signal Offset Adjustments Advanced Detection
How are We Doing? 2007 – 2014 Total Crashes 5000 4000 • Total Crashes up 13% 3000 2000 • VMT Increased 2% 1000 0 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 Injury Crashes • Injury Crashes down 14% 400 300 200 100 0 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 24
Take Aways • CDOT SPFs are a better fit • Looking beyond high crash locations • Low cost safety improvements can make a big difference • Worthwhile to dig deeper 25
Bluetooth Performance Data 26
Bluetooth Performance Data • Installed 31 bluetooth readers at major intersections 27
Individual Pairs
Smoothed Travel Time Curve
Uses: University Impact
Uses: Long Term Construction Impact
Uses: Construction Impact by Time of Day 32
Uses: Construction Impact by Time of Day 33
Uses: Spot Improvements
Uses: Spot Improvements
Daily Variation
Take Aways • You can’t fix what you don’t know • Traditional methods of modeling performance may not be calibrated very well • Evolving technology 37
Railroad Quiet Zones 38
Railroad Quiet Zones A unique urban environment with RR tracks in the center of the street 39
Mason Corridor Risk Indices • Nationwide Significant Risk Threshold – 14,347 • Mason Risk Index with Horn – 30,930 • Mason Quiet Zone Risk Index – 51,592 Train Speed on Mason in the FRA Inventory – 49 mph Calculated 95 th % Train Speed – 22 mph 40
Mason Corridor Risk Indices From the Train Horn Rule: " FRA rates collisions that occur at train speeds in excess of 25 mph as an Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) level 5 ($2,287,500) and injuries that result from collisions involving trains traveling under 25 mph as an AIS level 2 ($46,500). About half of grade crossing collisions occur at speeds greater than 25 mph. Therefore, FRA estimates that the value of preventing the average injury resulting from a grade crossing collision is $1,167,000 (the average of an AIS-5 injury and an AIS-2 injury) .” 41
Mason Corridor Risk Indices From the Train Horn Rule: " FRA rates collisions that occur at train speeds in excess of 25 mph as an Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) level 5 ($2,287,500) and injuries that result from collisions involving trains traveling under 25 mph as an AIS level 2 ($46,500). About half of grade crossing collisions occur at speeds greater than 25 mph. Therefore, FRA estimates that the value of preventing the average injury resulting from a grade crossing collision is $1,167,000 (the average of an AIS-5 injury and an AIS-2 injury) .” Question: What cost should be used for an injury crash on a corridor where trains travel at less than 25 mph? 42
Risk Indices Location Location Risk Index* Risk Index* Injury Crashes Fatal Crashes Injury Crashes Fatal Crashes Nationwide Significant Nationwide Significant 14,347 14,347 Risk Threshold Risk Threshold Mason Grade Crossing Mason Grade Crossing 1 injury crash 1 injury crash 1 fatal crash 1 fatal crash 5,695 5,695 Risk Index with Horn Risk Index with Horn every 117 years every 117 years every 711 years every 711 years Mason Grade Crossing Mason Grade Crossing 1 injury crash 1 injury crash 1 fatal crash 1 fatal crash 6,799 6,799 Quiet Zone Risk Index Quiet Zone Risk Index every 107 years every 107 years every 650 years every 650 years Average Signalized Average Signalized 3.2 injury crashes 3.2 injury crashes 1 fatal crash 1 fatal crash 191,935 191,935 Intersection in FC Intersection in FC per year per year every 67 years every 67 years * Risk Index for intersections using FRA Train Horn Rule methodology and crash cost estimates assuming $46,500 per injury crash at signalized intersections versus $1,167,000 per injury crash at grade crossings.
Take Aways • Train horn rule needs work • Does not adequately consider train speeds • Safety isn’t black and white • May make quiet zones more realistic where train speeds are low 44
Moving Forward 45
We’ve chosen a cautiously innovative approach • “Safety” is complicated • Good data is critical • Many new opportunties • Prioritization is challenging 46
Thank You! City of Fort Collins Traffic Operations Department 970-221-6630 Joe Olson jolson@fcgov.com Martina Wilkinson mwilkinson@fcgov.com 47
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