Project Number:
04-09
Research Project:
Reduction of Construction Project Risks to Pedestrians, Drivers, and Transit Passengers Through Analysis of Historical Accident Records
P.I. Name & Address:
John A. Kuprenas
Department of Civil Engineering
University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA 90089-02531
Tel:(213) 487-1145
Fax:(213) 487-1051
Email:kuprenas@usc.edu
Project Objective:
The project objective is to use informational and financial resources of METRANS to fund research by one graduate student and one research assistant professor from the Civil Engineering Department at the University of Southern California.The proposed study will use the Pareto Principle and an accident chain analysis to analyze historical accident records to develop new construction project workplace safety recommendations that will reduce active construction project risks to pedestrians, drivers, and transit passengers.
Fulfillment of this objective requires the research team to work closely with state transportation department agency staff to
- Review existing California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) contractor safety rules, regulations, and processes;
- Review informal Caltrans contractor work practices and processes;
- Collect and review Caltrans accident data (specific to injuries to the public while they are using the transportation network);
- Analyze and correlate accident data with work practices and accident conditions (using the Pareto Principle and an accident chain analysis); we will
- Analyze whether Caltrans safety practices were followed
- Identify areas where practices where not effective
- Analyze of role of site conditions in accident
- Develop improved measures to Caltrans' safety processes so as to reduce crash risk and improve transit safety.
The fulfillment of this objective also requires publishing a report of findings to share lessons learned with the Caltrans local district staff, as well as and state and federal agencies, specifically California's Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System (SWITRS), California Highway Patrol's (CHP) Multidisciplinary Accident Investigation Team (MAIT) Program, and the Highway Safety Information System (HSIS) Laboratory, as applicable.
Additional objectives of the proposed research program are to present (by the graduate student) and publish the study results at a national transportation congress, publish the study results in a national refereed engineering journal, present the results at a thematic conference organized by METRANS, and use the study results in education and training of graduate students in the transportation and construction programs at the University of Southern California (CE460) and California State University, Long Beach (CE 576).
Task Descriptions:
1. Review methodology, approach and objectives with Caltrans District staff. (1 months)
2. Review of existing Caltrans contractor safety rules, regulations, and processes.(2 months)
3. Review of informal Caltrans contractor work practices and processes.(1 month)
4. Collection and review of Caltrans accident data (Specific to injuries to public.(3 months)
5. Analysis and correlation of accident data with work practices and accident conditions.(2 ½ moonths)
6.Development of improvement measures to Caltrans' safety processes.(1 month)
7.Presentation of findings to Caltrans/refinement of recommendations.(1/2 month)
8.Documentation and reporting of research results.(1 month)
Milestones, Dates:
January 5, 2004 - January 4, 2005
Total Budget:
$20,000
Student Involvement:
One Student @ 25% effort, 8 months
Relationship to Other Research Projects:
Related to 00-11, part of safety focus area
Technology Transfer Activities:
Project report will be posted on the website
Potential Benefits of the Project:
Reduced accidents at highway construction sites
TRB Keywords:
Highway safety, construction zones
Primary Subject:
4b.3 Behavioral sciences and human performance
Goals:
Safety
Enabling Research:
Human performance and behavior
Modal Orientation:
Highway, transit
