Lake of the Woods Road and St. Charles Road, Boone Co. MO

1. Lake of the Woods Road and St. Charles Road, Boone Co. MO Road Safety Assessment pilot program Completed for the city of Columbia and Boone CountyMade possible by the Blueprint Coalition Infrastructure subcommittee in cooperation with:Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) University of Missouri-Columbia Missouri Local Technical Assistance Program (MO LTAP)

2. Road Safety Assessment pilot program • Funded by Blueprint Safety Coalition Executive Committee to promote RSA’s • Final report on pilot program written by UMC to detail steps of a successful RSA • Promotional material will be developed by Missouri LTAP to encourage local agencies to hold RSA’s

3. Road Safety Assessment/Audit (RSA) • “A road safety audit is a formal safety performance examination of an existing or future road or intersection by an independent audit team.” • Road safety reviews are performed by multi-disciplined team • http://www.roadwaysafetyaudits.org/

4. Focus of RSA • Uses a larger (5+person) interdisciplinary team. • Members are usually independent of the project. • The field review is a necessary component of the safety audit. • Use checklists and field reviews to examine design features.  • Comprehensive and consider all factors that may contribute to a crash. • Consider the needs of pedestrians, cyclists, large trucks as well as automobile drivers. 

5. RSA • Road Safety Assessments are proactive. They look at locations prior to the development of crash patterns to correct hazards before they happen.

6. Steps to Conduct a RSA (FHWA)

7. Suggestions for Conducting RSAs • A. Background information: a. Detailed road maps and aerial maps b. Road construction plans / Sign and traffic control devices c. Accident reports d. Interviews with: city and county officials / agencies and groups e. Future development plans • B. A multidisciplinary team provided alternative views on how to approach solutions for the safety issues encountered in the site visit. City / County officials did NOT participate in the field review

8. Suggestions for Conducting RSAs • C. Site visit: Provide a “strip” map to each team member with an appropriate scale for them to be able to write comments directly on it. This way the team members could focus more on evaluating safety hazards than on drawing sketches or writing long verbal descriptions. It also provides future reference to the exact location of a feature that needs corrections. • D. Interviews with road users: It could be beneficial to perform interviews with road users to collect information on situations that can occur on conditions other than those under which the site visit was performed (for example ice on the roads and night visibility).

9. St. Charles Road and Lake of the Woods Road – pilot program • Minor arterial collectors • Paved in place, conforming to existing property lines

10. Intersection of St. Charles Road and Route Z Vehicles in St. Charles Rd. are unable to see vehicles approaching from Route Z. 7 crashes reported in the same spot. Crash Data

11. Major Concerns • Poor visibility, stopping sight distance • Posted speed • Confusing intersections • Narrow road • Construction of new High School on St. Charles Road

12. Road Safety Assessment Team • April 10, 2008 site visit -- May 30, 2008 project report • Road Safety Assessment Team: • Brian Chandler Missouri Department of Transportation • Jacob Ray Missouri Department of Transportation • John Schaefer Missouri Department of Transportation • Donald Neumann Federal Highway Administration • Scott Sergent City of Columbia Police Department • Charlie Oestrich Columbia Public Schools Board • Diane Heckemeyer Linn State Technical College • Britt E. Smith Jefferson City, Missouri • Charles Nemmers University of Missouri • Praveen Edara University of Missouri • Ginger M. Rossy University of Missouri

14. Intersection between St. Charles Rd. and Route Z Assessment Findings

15. Intersection between St. Charles Rd. and Route Z • Findings • The eastbound and westbound approaches of St. Charles Rd. are not aligned. • Dense vegetation obstructs the visibility of the stop sign on the eastbound approach • There are no stop bars on the pavements. • There are no shoulders or sidewalks on any intersection approach.

16. Intersection between St. Charles Rd. and Route Z • Findings (continued) • There are serious drainage problems at the intersection and water accumulates at the sides of the intersection

17. Intersection between St. Charles Rd. and Route Z • Findings (continued) • Drivers that stop on the eastbound approach are not able to see the oncoming traffic from the north due to the presence of a large barn-like structure obstructing the view • Drivers are forced to move further into the intersection to be able to see the oncoming traffic.

18. Intersection between St. Charles Rd. and Route Z • Suggestions for improvement • Reduce the speed limit on Route Z near the intersection • Add stop signs for Route Z • Improve drainage, especially on the southwest quadrant of the intersection, • Remove vegetation to make stop signs visible from a distance • Add edge markings and stop bars on the pavements • Install signs to identify Route Z • Install speed limit signs on Route Z • Verify compliance of existing signs with the MUTCD regulations, • Consider larger size signs.

19. The Pilot Program was a successful collaboration that demonstrated the process & importance of RSA’s.Watch for upcoming information on RSA’s from Missouri LTAP:- How to Conduct RSA’s - a “train the trainer” course to educate local agencies on the RSA process.- Why to Conduct RSA’s – promotional material based on the pilot program. Road Safety Assessment

20. Questions???