Work Zone Safety and Mobility_supporting statement2

Supporting Statement

Work Zone Safety and Mobility

Introduction

This is a request for OMB clearance for a renewal of an already approved information collection to be titled, "Work Zone Safety and Mobility.” This information collection clearance is supported by the amendment of 23 CFR 630, Subpart J “Work Zone Safety and Mobility” and the information collection requirements contained in it.

Part A. Justification

1. Circumstances that make collection of information necessary:

Crashes and congestion on highways and roads due to work zones is a growing problem. This regulation (23 CFR 630, Subpart J) addresses the current state of the practice when addressing work zone safety and mobility. With the growing concern of increasing fatality rates and massive congestion on urban highways, this regulation addresses the effects of work zones on our transportation system’s safe and efficient operation. This information collection supports the FHWA’s strategic goals of safety and mobility.

The Work Zone Safety and Mobility program requires State and local transportation agencies that receive Federal-aid highway funding to use available work zone information and data to assess and manage the work zone impacts of highway projects. While the regulation does not require the reporting or submission of work zone data, it does:

• Require agencies to use work zone data at both the project and process levels to manage and improve work zone safety and mobility;

• At the project level, require agencies to use field observations, available work zone crash data, and operational information to manage the work zone impacts of individual projects;

• At the process level, require agencies to analyze work zone crash and operational data from multiple projects to improve agency processes and procedures, and continually pursue the improvement of overall work zone safety and mobility; and

• Recommend that agencies maintain elements of the data and information resources that are necessary to support the use of work zone data for the activities above.

Most of the data needed to conduct work zone performance monitoring during project implementation as well as post-implementation assessments should be readily available from pre-existing sources. However, data collection or data storage and retrieval systems may need to be altered to take full advantage of available information resources.

2. How, by whom, and for what purpose is the information used:

The information requirement focuses on 3 areas of highway project delivery – Policy, Assessment, and Transportation Management Planning. Each one of these areas is now being addressed by the affected agencies to various degrees.

The entity responsible for accomplishing the task of developing policy, assessing the safety and mobility effects of a highway project, and providing a transportation management plan that addresses crash mitigation strategies and congestion will be the State Transportation Departments (STD).

Each STD will develop policies and practices that support the reduction of work zone related crashes and congestion. The STD will assess their transportation projects for the effects on the transportation network due to the type and degree of work being accomplished. The degree of effect the project has on safety, network delay, congestion, economic impacts, etc. will dictate the extent of the assessment required by the STD. The degree of assessment is up to the discretion and policy of the STD, with the overall goal being to reduce crashes and congestion due to work zones.

Based on the results of the assessment process and the mitigation strategies chosen, the STD will develop a transportation management plan. This plan may address such items as: design and construction options, traffic management and operational solutions, and communication and outreach strategies. Whatever the appropriate solution is to improve safety and mobility due to the work zone activities, it will be detailed in a transportation management plan that can be integrated into the project.

Each of the elements of this requirement will be used to support the overall goal of reducing crashes and congestion due to work zones. The policy piece will drive what the STD thinks are important conditions and appropriate actions to deal with work zone safety and mobility issues. The policy piece will also drive when an assessment is required for highway and road projects. The assessment will look at the project components and their associated effects on the transportation network, traveling public, and user costs. The assessment will result in options for the STD to implement that will aid in reducing crashes and congestion due to the work zone. The final solutions that the STD chose to use in a project will become part of the project execution strategy by the use of a transportation management plan. This plan is the clearly defined approach that is to be used by the STD in the mitigation of work zone safety and mobility effects.

3. Extent of automated information collection:

Current technical analysis is accomplished using automated software systems to look at proper design solutions, cost estimating, construction scheduling, and traffic flow solutions. No surveys and standardized forms are required as a result of this regulation.

4. Efforts to identify duplication:

The information requirement generated by this regulation does not duplicate any existing information efforts.

5. Efforts to minimize the burden on small business:

There is no impact on small business.

6. Impact of less frequent collection of information:

The frequency of information development is up to the STD. The STD will develop their own policy and procedures for use when they perform a project assessment. To minimize the requirement of this regulation would be counterproductive to achieving a reduction in crashes and congestion due to work zones.

7. Special circumstances:

There are no special circumstances related to this information collection.

8. Compliance with 5 CFR 1320.8:

Federal Register Volume 72, Number 37, Monday, February 26, 2007, page 8413. No comments were received.

9. Payments or gifts to respondents:

There will be no payments or gifts to the respondents.

10. Assurance of confidentiality:

None of the information is considered confidential.

11. Justification for collection of sensitive information:

The information to be collected is not sensitive in nature.

12. Estimate of burden hours for information requested:
    
    

The total estimate of burden hours for the Work Zone Safety and Mobility collection is 83,200 hours annually. This involves 52 (50 states, Wash DC and Puerto Rico) state departments of transportation with a continuous frequency of responses. Estimated annualized cost to respondents is 83,200 x $32/hour= $2,662,400.

13. Estimate of total annual costs to respondents:

There will be neither capital/start up costs nor operation/maintenance costs. The equipment required to provide the information is already part of the STD standard equipment. Other than salary costs in item 12 above, there are no costs to respondents to provide this information.

14. Estimate of cost to the Federal government:

There is no cost to the Federal government for this requirement.

15. Explanation of program changes or adjustments:

There are no program changes.

16. Publication of results of data collection:

This information is for the STD only and will not be published by the Federal government.

17. Approval for not displaying the expiration date of OMB approval:

Approval for not displaying the expiration date is not being requested.

18. Exceptions to certification statement:

No exceptions to the certification statement are being requested.