Engineering Safety Countermeasures


Florida's Target Zero Initiative is Taking a Safe System Approach to Develop SAFE ROADS

FHWA_SafeSystem_Infographic_V7

 
  

No death or serious injury is acceptable.

Humans make mistakes.

Humans are vulnerable.

Responsibility is shared.

Safety is proactive.

Redundancy is crucial.

 

The SAFE ROADS Element of The Safe System Approach:

Designing to anticipate human mistakes can greatly help prevent crashes or reduce their severity when they do occur. Examples include physically separating people traveling at different speeds, providing dedicated times for different users to move through a space, alerting users to hazards and other road users, or designing a more forgiving environment.

Florida has identified the risk factors for the mistakes that most often result in fatalities and serious injuries, to make strategic investments in engineering infrastructure to achieve SAFE ROADS and reach our target of ZERO fatalities and serious injuries.

Most Common Risk Factors in Florida’s Fatal and Serious Injury Crashes:

Lane Departures (33% of Florida’s fatalities and serious injuries)

Pedestrians and Bicyclists (28% of Florida’s fatalities and serious injuries)

Intersections (25% of Florida’s fatalities and serious injuries) 


FHWA’s Proven Effective Countermeasures to Address These Risk Factors:

Lane Departure
  1. Enhanced Delineation for Horizontal Curves
  2. Longitudinal Rumble Strips and Stripes on Two-Lane Roads
  3. Median Barriers
  4. Roadside Design Improvements at Curves
  5. SafetyEdge℠
  6. Wider Edge Lines
  7. Lighting
  8. Pavement Friction Management
Pedestrian and Bicyclist
  1. Crosswalk Visibility Enhancements
  2. Pedestrian Hybrid Beacons
  3. Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacons 
  4. Lighting
  5. Appropriate Speed Limits for All Road Users 
  6. Medians and Pedestrian Refuge Islands in Urban and Suburban Areas 
  7. Leading Pedestrian Interval 
  8. Bicycle Lanes
  9. Roadway Configuration
  10. Walkways 
  11. Pavement Friction Management
Intersection
  1. Backplates with Retroreflective Borders 
  2. Corridor Access Management 
  3. Dedicated Left- and Right-Turn Lanes at Intersections 
  4. Reduced Left-Turn Conflicted Intersections 
  5. Roundabouts
  6. Systemic Application of Multiple Low-Cost Countermeasures at Stop-Controlled Intersections 
  7. Yellow Change Intervals 
  8. Lighting 
  9. Pavement Friction Management 

Page updated: November 8, 2023