Transportation Engineering Commons^™

The North American Transportation Security Center – Technology Prototype Gap Analysis, Steven Douglas Kreis, Michael M. Barclay

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

Executive Summary

There are over 800,000 hazardous materials (hazmat) shipments over the nation’s roads each day. According to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), terrorist activity related to the transportation of hazardous materials represents a significant threat to public safety and the nation’s critical infrastructure. Specifically, the federal government has identified the government’s inability to track hazmat shipments on a real-time basis as a significant security vulnerability.

In 2004, the U.S. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) completed a study to determine if “smart truck” technology such as GPS tracking, wireless modems, panic buttons, and onboard computers could be …

Highway-Railway At-Grade Crossings: Rideability Measurements And Assessments, Jerry G. Rose, Thomas W. Witt, Aaron F. Renfro, Nathan E. Ridgeway

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

This report provides two analyses for obtaining a quantitative means of rating the condition of railroad‐highway at‐grade crossings based on their measured roughness. Phase One of this report examined 11 crossings in the Lexington area by use of a laser based inertial profiler from the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) and a Face Rolling Dipstick. Phase Two was a continuation of Phase One with 26 crossings examined using inertial profilers from both the KYTC and the National Center of Asphalt technology. Objective ratings based on rideability were obtained and wheelpath profiles were measured for each crossing. Several roughness indexes were computed …

Highway-Railway At-Grade Crossing Structures: Optimum Design/Installation Practices And Management Program – An Overview, Jerry G. Rose

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

Replacing and rehabilitating highway-railway at-grade crossings represent major track maintenance expenses for the U.S. highway governmental agencies and railroad industry. The ideal crossing system is one that will maintain a smooth surface and stable highway/trackbed for a long period of time minimizing costly and inconvenient disruptions to highway and rail traffic.

This report describes the consensus goals for, and the development of, a cooperative, fast-track crossing renewal system for an ideal highway-railway crossing management program. The performance-based process utilizes premium structural materials and construction techniques to provide long-term, cost effective, smooth, and safe crossings. Specifically stressed is the desirability of …

Highway-Railway At-Grade Crossings: Long-Term Settlement Measurements And Assessments, Jerry G. Rose, Mary G. Swiderski, Justin S. Anderson, Lindsay A. Walker

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The purpose of this research was to evaluate the long-term settlements for a wide variety of at-grade crossings. Twenty-four highway crossings were monitored to determine the effects of enhanced support on minimizing long-term settlements of the crossing surfaces. Settlements of the rail and highway approaches to the crossing areas were compared to settlements of the common crossing areas over an average service period of three years. Long-term settlements of crossings with traditional all-granular support materials were compared to crossings with enhanced support. The enhanced support was provided by substituting a layer of asphalt (termed underlayment) for the all-granular subballast layer. …

Vehicle Tire-Pavement Interfacial Surface Pressure Measurements And Assessments, Jerry G. Rose, Timothy E. Guenther

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

This report examines a method of using Piezoelectric Pressure-Sensitive Ink (Tekscan) Pressure Measurement System to evaluate vehicle tire pressures that are exerted on the surface of pavements. Upgrades to the Tekscan system facilitated refinements from previous research and allows for procedures to be modified in order to account for these improvements. Among the most significant advances is the ability to select various sensitivities within the software program. In addition to the methodology of evaluating calibration practices, sensitivity and sensor selection, it was important to determine how accurately the pressures and wheel loads can be computed from pavement tests. Also examined …

Highway-Railway At-Grade Crossings: Trackbed And Surface Pressure Measurements And Assessments, Jerry G. Rose, Daniel M. Durrett, Lindsay A. Walker, Jason C. Stith

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

Techniques are described for installing instrumentation within highway/railway crossings – to measure vertical pressures under moving highway and railway loadings – using earth pressure cells. Also, techniques are described for installing instrumentation between rail base/tie plate interfaces – to measure vertical pressures under moving railway loadings – using pressure sensitive ink sensors. In addition, the sensors were used to measure the surface pressures imparted by highway vehicles on crossing surfaces. Data is presented for several crossings including a wide variety of conditions and loading intensities. The data serves to quantify pressure gradients within highway/railway crossings for application to structural design …

Evaluation Of The Use Of Snowplowable Raised Pavement Markers, Kenneth R. Agent, Eric R. Green

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness and durability of snowplowable raised pavement markers (RPM) installed on the RPM system in Kentucky. The durability evaluation dealt with the marker housing.

The data show that continued use of the currently approved snowplowable RPM can be justified if the castings are properly installed on new pavements with a commitment that the pavement will be maintained. An evaluation of centerline rumble strips installations showed that they should be considered on rural, two-lane roads with 12-foot lane widths (having new pavements) and paved shoulders.

Evaluation Plan For The Ticketing Aggressive Cars And Trucks (Tact) Program In Kentucky, Eric R. Green

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

Kentucky State Police Division of Commercial Vehicle Enforcement in cooperation with Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has started a concentrated education and enforcement campaign in an effort to increase the safety and awareness of drivers around commercial vehicles. The University of Kentucky Transportation Center has evaluated this campaign and reported the effectiveness of this effort.

The campaign was focused in two high volume, high crash interstate areas: one in northern Kentucky on I‐75, and one in the Louisville area on I‐65. Several blitzes (including a media and enforcement component) were conducted throughout the year. This evaluation measured the success …

Evaluation Of The Work Zone Safety And Mobility Rule, Kenneth R. Agent, Jerry G. Pigman

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The Work Zone Safety and Mobility Rule (Rule) was published in the Federal Register in September 2004 indicating that all state and local governments receiving Federal-aid funding were required to comply with provisions of the Rule no later than October 2007. Kentucky received an extension to October 2008. The objectives of this study were to review the requirements of the Work Zone Safety and Mobility Rule and provide recommendations for implementation of the Rule to ensure a consistent approach for designing and managing the impacts of work zones. This report documents results from: a) a review of literature and Kentucky’s …

Experimental Painting Of The I-64 Riverside Parkway In Louisville, Ky, Rick Younce, Theodore Hopwood Ii, Sudhir Palle

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet conducted a large-scale zone maintenance painting operation on 13 elevated steel bridges along the I-64 Riverside Parkway in Louisville, KY in 2007. That work included abrasive blast-cleaning and painting of steel underlying open deck joints on 3.2 miles of steel structures. The painting was performed by spray application of one coat of a calcium sulfonate alkyd coating. The painting covered an area of 237,060 ft2 of steel cleaned and painted at a unit cost of $15.82/ft2.

The project incorporated a high level of containment as the existing coating possessed lead-based paints and the project was located …

Kentucky Traffic Collision Facts 2009 Report, Kentucky Transportation Center, Kentucky State Police

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

KENTUCKY’S TRAFFIC COLLISION FACTS report for 2009 is based on collision reports submitted to the Kentucky State Police Records Branch. As required by Kentucky Revised Statutes 189.635, “every law enforcement agency whose officers investigate a vehicle accident of which a report must be made...shall file a report of the accident...within ten days after investigation of the accident upon forms supplied by the bureau.” The stated purpose of this requirement is to utilize data on traffic collisions for such purposes as will improve the traffic safety program in the Commonwealth. Data contained in this report are based solely on the observations …

Reduction Of Stresses On Buried Rigid Highway Structures Using The Imperfect Ditch Method And Expanded Polysterene (Geofoam), Liecheng Sun, Tommy C. Hopkins, Tony L. Beckham

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The study of earth pressure distribution on buried structures has a great practical importance in constructing highway embankments above pipes and culverts. Based on Spangler’s research, the supporting strength of a conduit depends primarily on three factors: 1. The inherent strength of the conduit; 2. The distribution of the vertical load and bottom reaction; and 3. The magnitude and distribution of lateral earth pressures that act against the sides of the structure. Rigid culverts are frequently used in Kentucky for routing streams beneath highway embankments because of rolling and mountainous terrain, numerous streams, shallow depths to bedrock, which creates unyielding …

Kentucky Highway User Survey 2008, Lenahan O'Connell

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

This study updates surveys of Kentucky driver opinion regarding the quality of Kentucky’s highway system. The survey was conducted in 2008. Data is presented in bar graphs and tables that allow the analysis of changes in public opinion since the first administration of the survey. For most topics, data are available from 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, and 2008. The respondents are 845 Kentucky-licensed drivers, age 18 and over. The study looked at seven characteristics of Kentucky highways and found that satisfaction levels were quite stable since 2003. In regard to overall satisfaction in 2008, 54% of drivers said they were …

The North American Transportation Security Center, Steven Douglas Kreis, Michael M. Barclay

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

No abstract provided.

Annual Update Of Data For Estimating Esal, Clark Graves, Jerry G. Pigman, Brad Rister, David Cain, Neil Tollner

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

No abstract provided.

Practical Solution Concepts For Planning And Designing Roadways In Kentucky, Nikiforos Stamatiadis, Adam Kirk, Donald L. Hartman, Jerry G. Pigman

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

Kentucky’s highway agency has embarked upon an initiative tagged “Practical Solutions” which sets its goal toward reducing costs throughout the project development process extended into operations and maintenance of all highway facilities. This study focuses on the planning and design stages of project development. Developing a procedure that yields up to the maximum margin of return for the investment requires an approach that takes into account specific safety issues and the commensurate design elements for each roadway. Such an approach requires that the project 1) achieves the stated goals/objectives and 2) delivers the highest rate of return for the investment. …

Analysis Of Traffic Crash Data In Kentucky (2003 – 2007), Eric R. Green, Kenneth R. Agent, Jerry G. Pigman

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

This report documents an analysis of traffic crash data in Kentucky for the years of 2003 through 2007. A primary objective of this study was to determine average crash statistics for Kentucky highways. Average and critical numbers and rates of crashes were calculated for various types of highways in rural and urban areas. These data can be used in Kentucky’s procedure to identify locations that have abnormal rates or numbers of crashes.

The other primary objective of this study was to provide data that can be used in the preparation of the problem identification portion of Kentucky’s Annual Highway Safety …

2008 Safety Belt Usage Survey In Kentucky, Kenneth R. Agent, Eric R. Green

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The objective of this study was to establish 2008 safety belt and child safety seat usage rates in Kentucky. The 2008 survey continues to document the results after enactment of the initial “secondary enforcement” statewide mandatory safety belt law in 1994 and the subsequent change to “primary enforcement” which was enacted in 2006. Data were collected at 200 randomly selected sites spread across Kentucky. Data from the individual sites were combined into a statewide percentage considering roadway functional classification, geographic region, and vehicle miles traveled.

The data show that the usage rate in 2008 (73.3 percent) increased compared to 2007 …

Monitoring Culvert Load With Shallow Filling Under Geofoam Areas, Charlie Sun, Tommy C. Hopkins

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

Geofoam and the “Imperfect Ditch” method can be used effectively on embankment projects to reduce pressures on underground structures when sufficient fill height is available to create an arching effect. When the fill height is too shallow the arching effect cannot be created. However, the pressure acting on the underground structure can still be reduced by making use of the very small unit weight of lightweight geofoam material. In this study, stresses acting on a three-sided culvert were reduced using lightweight geofoam. Initially, the culvert had been designed to carry a 6-foot loading. During construction it was discovered that the …

Structural Evaluation Of The John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge, Ching Chiaw Choo, Issam E. Harik

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The primary objective of the structural evaluation of the John A. Roebling Bridge is to determine the maximum allowable gross vehicle weight (GWV) that can be carried by the bridge deck structural elements such as the open steel grid deck, channels, standard sections, or built-up sections. To achieve this objective, four levels of analysis are carried out: "Element Level", "Sectional level 1", "Sectional level II", and "Global level" analysis.

The four levels of analysis yield a load envelope that encapsulates the maximum and minimum allowable loads. The maximum allowable gross vehicle weight (GWV) for different truck and bus types are …

Evaluation Of Kentucky’S “Click It Or Ticket” 2008 Campaign, Kenneth R. Agent, Eric R. Green, Ronald E. Langley

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The objective of this report was to document the results of the “Click It or Ticket” 2008 campaign in Kentucky. The campaign involved a combination of earned media, paid media, and enforcement. The earned media started about three weeks prior to Memorial Day 2008 and continued through the enforcement period. The paid media campaign was for the two weeks prior to Memorial Day while the enforcement period was a two-week period including the week before and the week of Memorial Day.

The evaluation of the campaign included documenting the activities associated with the program (publicity and enforcement) and evaluating the …

Structural Evaluation Of The John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge – Element Level Analysis, Ching Chiaw Choo, Issam E. Harik

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The primary objective of the structural evaluation of the John A. Roebling Bridge is to determine the maximum allowable gross vehicle weight (GVW) that can be carried by the bridge deck structural elements such as the open steel grid deck, channels, standard sections, or built-up sections. To achieve this objective, an “Element Level Analysis” is carried out. The maximum allowable GVW for different truck and bus types are presented for different levels of structural elements sectional loss. The loss or reduction in element sectional properties is due to rust, cracks, etc.

The critical member in the bridge deck is the …

Qc/Qa: Evaluation Of Effectiveness In Kentucky, Kamyar C. Mahboub, Paul M. Goodrum, Andy Glasglow, Jason Enlow, Nick Hendrix, Moin Uddin

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

Quality control and quality assurance in the highway industry is going through a cultural shift. There is a growing trend toward using the contractor data for acceptance and payment purposes. This has led to serious concerns about conflicts of interests. The question remains: are there adequate safeguards in place? To address these concerns, a number of asphalt and concrete QC/QA projects in Kentucky were examined and statistical analyses were conducted. This report presents a summary of findings and recommendations. Generally speaking, the Kentucky experience revealed that the QC/QA system is working well, and the agency’s random inspection data when compared …

Preliminary Seismic Evaluation And Ranking Of Bridges On And Over The Parkways In Western Kentucky, Jian Xie, Issam E. Harik, Tong Zhao, Jindong Hu

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

Five parkways in Western Kentucky are located in the region that is greatly influenced by the New Madrid and Wabash Valley Seismic Zones. This report executes a preliminary screening process, known also as the Seismic Rating System, for bridges on and over parkways in Western Kentucky to identify the seismic vulnerable bridges.

The ranking of bridges derived from this rating system is based on: structural vulnerability, seismic and geotechnical hazards, and bridge importance. There are 349 bridges were ranked with the Seismic Inventory of Bridges (SIB), a user-oriented database program developed according to the Seismic Retrofitting Manual. The bridge ranks …

Future Management Strategies For State Maintained Wetlands And Stream Mitigation Sites, Sudhir Palle, Theodore Hopwood Ii

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

This study was to identify existing wetland/stream mitigation sites owned by the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) and assess performance of those sites including problems encountered and maintenance costs. Initial work determined that KYTC Districts performed actions to address wetlands/stream mitigation maintenance under the direction and funding support of KYTC Division of Environmental Analysis. KYTC also sought to identify best practices employed by other transportation agencies. A survey of transportation agencies in neighboring states indicated that most significant “best practice” was to obtain wetland management oversight by their state Fish and Wildlife agencies 5 years after the permitting process (Section 404 …

Seismic Evaluation Of Bridges On And Over The Parkways In Western Kentucky – Summary Report, Ching Chiaw Choo, Jian Xie, Tong Zhao, Jindong Hu, Hanshan Ding, Zhenming Wang, Baoping Shi, Abheetha Peiris, Issam E. Harik, Edward W. Woolery

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

This report (KTC-07-02/SPR246-02-1F) provides an overall summary on the seismic investigative study performed on bridges on/over the five parkways in Western Kentucky. The comprehensive study was further divided into the followings tasks, each reported separately as follows:

(1) The first report of this study (KTC-07-03/SRP246-02-2F) involved data collection and field inspection of bridges on/over the parkways. The resulting inventory contains data of three hundred fifty-one (351) bridges on/over the parkways, detailing their construction type, soil profile, present condition, etc.

(2) In KTC-07-04/SPR246-02-3F, a preliminary seismic evaluation and ranking was performed on all bridges within the inventory. Details of the evaluation …

Site Investigation Of Bridges On And Over The Parkways In Western Kentucky, Jindong Hu, Tong Zhao, Issam E. Harik, Jian Xie

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

Determination of the seismic risk of the bridges on and over the parkways in Western Kentucky requires evaluating the current condition of the individual elements of the bridges. Except for culverts, all bridges were visually inspected, photographed and the records were stored in a database. Data of the visual inspection and the photographs were combined to form the completed site inspection forms. Any visually observed deficiencies of the bridge elements were recorded.

A Compact Disc (CD) that includes pictures of the bridges is attached to this report. The site inspection forms of all bridges on and over the parkways in …

Equivalent Barge And Flotilla Impact Forces On Bridge Piers, Peng Yuan, Issam E. Harik

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

Bridge piers located in navigable inland waterways are designed to resist impact forces from barges and flotillas in addition to other design considerations (e.g., scour, dead and live loads, etc.). The primary design tool for estimating these forces is the AASHTO Guide Specification which provides a simple hand calculation method for determining an “equivalent impact force”. The simplicity comes at a cost of excluding the effect of the pier shape, impact duration, and interaction between barges in a flotilla. The objective of this report is to present a hand calculation method for determining barge or flotilla equivalent static impact forces …

Evaluation Of Median Barrier Safety Issues, Kenneth R. Agent, Jerry G. Pigman

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the Brifen TL-4 and Trinity CASS median cable barrier systems in preventing cross-median collisions on sections of I-64, I-71, and I-265 (Brifen system) and I-265 (Trinity system) in Jefferson County and on KY 4 (Brifen system) in Fayette County. An effort was made to identify crashes which involved a vehicle crossing a median. Using specific logic to identify this type of crash, 392 crashes were identified for the five-year period of 2001 through 2005. Using crash and mileage data resulted in an average of 0.28 crossover crashes per mile …

Technology Scan For Electronic Toll Collection, Joseph D. Crabtree, Candice Y. Wallace, Natasha J. Mamaril

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The purpose of this project was to identify and assess available technologies and methodologies for electronic toll collection (ETC) and to develop recommendations for the best way(s) to implement toll collection in the Louisville metropolitan area. The intent was to determine which tolling mechanisms maximize efficiency and effectiveness of toll collection while minimizing traffic impacts. This report describes the advantages and disadvantages of tolling, current tolling technologies, the purpose of ETC, and the benefits and costs of ETC. Implementation issues for ETC are discussed, including the location of toll collection facilities, ETC methodologies, interoperability of ETC systems, how to handle …