Transportation Engineering and Safety Conference 2024

Heavy trucks are a critical piece of a region’s freight movement plan.  However, managing where and when these vehicles may travel is a logistical and operational challenge for both municipalities and PennDOT.  During this session, the presenters will cover (1) the Pennsylvania laws and regulations that are used to restrict truck traffic on both state and local road, and (2) strategies that are being used in the Lehigh Valley to manage the impact of truck traffic in the region.        
Topic 1: Posted Roads – Understanding 4902(a) and (b) Postings       
Speaker: Nick Ninosky

Topic 2: Posted Roads – Understanding 4902(a) and (b) Postings       
Speaker: Halley Cole

Topic 3: Planning for trucks in Your Community           
Speaker: Brian Hite

This session will present current day Federal and Pennsylvania perspectives for highway freight planning and operations. The FHWA PA Division will provide updates of topical interest that will set the stage for three areas of statewide interest: infrastructure preservation through bridge strike prevention, municipal freight planning, and implementation of the 2023 TAC Truck Parking Study.

Federal Perspective
State Perspective

Topic 1: Infrastructure Preservation – Bridge Strike Prevention
Speaker: Todd Trautz

Topic 2: Local Perspective – Municipal Planning for Freight
Speaker: Bob Dolan

Topic 3: Operations Perspective – TAC Truck Parking Implementation
Speaker: Tom Phelan

What are the ramifications of designing streets to maintain peak hour capacity? We’ll broaden the scope to look at 24-hour operations on a selection of multilane arterials throughout Philadelphia. How much of the day do these corridors have excess capacity and what are the resulting impacts on driver speeds and safety, particularly for vulnerable road users. This session takes theories introduced in NCHRP 1036: Roadway Cross-Section Reallocation and applies them to real world examples, layering in speed and crash data to more fully evaluate how these corridors operate outside of the traditional peak hour view of a traffic engineer.

Topic 1:  24-Hour Capacity Framework
Speakers: Bastian Schroeder & Conor Semler

Topic 2: Evaluating the Off-Peak Impacts of Designing for Peak Hour Operations 
Speakers: Adam Smith & Jacob Elliott

Topic 3 Implementing Complete Streets, Safe Systems, and NCHRP 1036 in Minnesota
Speaker: Sarina Praseedom

This session will discuss Traffic Management Center (TMC) and law enforcement dispatch center assessments for State, County, and City agencies across North America that AECOM has performed. The purpose of these assessments is to identify areas of opportunity and existing strengths that can be leveraged to enhance current operational quality and consistency, in addition to adding expanded service areas. In the presentation, we will highlight common findings and recommendations from the numerous anonymously-referenced programs we have evaluated. Our goal is to share valuable lessons learned that can apply to any operations-focused program, not just TMCs. The SR 28, Section A64 Wrong Way Detection System HSIP project will begin construction in 2024 in Allegheny County. Within this freeway corridor from East Ohio Street, City of Pittsburgh to the interchange with SR 910, Harmar Township, twenty (20) ramps will be upgraded to include an ITS wrong way detection and warning system. The project scope of work is the installation of sensors to detect wrong way drivers, cameras, and LED border lit signs, also alert notifications to the Traffic Management Center of a wrong way driver. Physical work will include the installation of controller boxes, fiber optic cable, wireless radios, electrical tie ins, cameras, and signs.

Topic 1: SR 28, Section A64 Wrong Way Detection System
Speaker: Stephanie Zolnak

Topic 2:  Traffic Management Center Operating Trends
Speakers: Matt Lee & Arnaud Huguet

Governor Shapiro’s Executive Order 2023-07 established the Office of Transformation and Opportunity (OTO), which has been established to work with Commonwealth agencies to eliminate barriers to economic development and increase the efficiency in processing permits. As part of the effort, both OTO and PennDOT have established various teams to identify and implement improvements to the highway occupancy permit (HOP) program to streamline the permitting process. This session looks to provide an update on those improvements.

Topic 1:   OTO’s Coordination and Collaboration with Stakeholders                 
Speaker: Eliza Erickson

Topic 2: Customer Service Team Achievements
Speaker: Eric Kinard

Topic 3: Traffic Engineering Team Achievements
Speaker: Steve Gault

This session will delve into the intricacies of traffic management at large special events. We will explore the planning, implementation, and communication strategies—including traveler information dissemination and internal team management—employed at three unique events to ensure the seamless flow of traffic and the safety of all participants. Through detailed case studies and expert insights, we will share lessons learned and best practices for managing mobility challenges and enhancing the overall event experience.

Topic 2: Title TBD – Northwest PA Solar Eclipse Event Management
Speaker 1: Greg Maser

Speaker 2: Edward Orzehowski

Topic 3: TBD – F1 Racing Event Management on the Vegas Strip        
Speaker: Tim Sjogren

In this session, participants will explore how agencies, business and research partners are promoting safer work zones through innovations and technologies. From Transportation Management Plan Coordination for 50+ projects in West Virginia, developing strategies and tools for state DOTs using zipper merge, and to enhancing nighttime work zone safety through effective off-the-shelf strategies, participants can learn effective ways to plan and manage work zones regardless of their environments.

Topic 1: When Multiple Projects Collide: Managing the Traffic Phasing of the Charleston Metro Bridge Initiative  Speaker: Amy Balmer Staud

Topic 2: “Wait Your Turn” – Showing how Late Merge Improves Work Zone Mobility           
Speaker: Scott R. Fritz

Topic 3: Light up the Night – Enhancing Safety in Nighttime Work Zones       
Speaker: Brian Crossley