Institute for Transportation

About the research

Interest in improving public perception of work zones has recently prompted a greater emphasis in work zone traffic management planning in general, and an associated interest in managing work zone incidents. Incidents are difficult to predict in time, location and severity because the mitigation of impacts of incidents in work zones requires considerable advanced planning and preparedness. This guidebook is intended as a resource for engineers and construction managers who are interested in developing sound incident management plans for work zones. Because of the huge variety of work zones and their environments, this guidebook emphasizes flexibility of approach. Although there are a few fundamental principles that must be adhered to, the applications of these principles should be customized to each situation. This guidebook draws from experiences of traffic engineers who have developed incident management plans for work zones and has adapted techniques developed for normal highways.