**HOV Pooled-Fund Study 2005 Annual Meeting**

**Project Proposal Form**

+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| **Project Title:** Evaluation of  |                                   |
| Markings and Delineation for      |                                   |
| Project Number: 2                 |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| > Concurrent Flow HOV Lanes       |                                   |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| Statement of Problem:             |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| Concurrent flow HOV lanes are the |                                   |
| most common type of HOV lane      |                                   |
| design. Concurrent flow HOV Lanes |                                   |
| may be listed as "buffer" and     |                                   |
| "no-buffer" separated. When HOV   |                                   |
| lanes are in operation on a       |                                   |
| part-time basis, restricting      |                                   |
| access is seldom practiced        |                                   |
| because motorists can become      |                                   |
| confused when the lanes are       |                                   |
| eligible to be used by all        |                                   |
| traffic. Concurrent flow HOV      |                                   |
| lanes appear like general purpose |                                   |
| lanes, except where a different   |                                   |
| pavement marking or spacing may   |                                   |
| be used along with the            |                                   |
| corresponding signing, to         |                                   |
| indicate to motorists the         |                                   |
| part-time occupancy restriction   |                                   |
| requirement.                      |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| Buffer separated HOV lanes have a |                                   |
| designated separation between the |                                   |
| HOV and general purpose lanes.    |                                   |
| This facility type restricts      |                                   |
| access to the HOV lane at         |                                   |
| designated locations where gaps   |                                   |
| in the buffer are marked and      |                                   |
| signed as ingress and egress      |                                   |
| points. As a result, buffer       |                                   |
| separated HOV lanes exist when    |                                   |
| occupancy restrictions are in     |                                   |
| place 24 hours a day. The use of  |                                   |
| wide buffer separation was        |                                   |
| initially employed on the El      |                                   |
| Monte Busway in 1976. The         |                                   |
| California DOT design standards   |                                   |
| require a four-feet wide buffer   |                                   |
| separating the HOV lane and the   |                                   |
| adjoining general purpose lanes.  |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| Typically, a no-buffer separated  |                                   |
| HOV lane is striped with a single |                                   |
| broken white line or a single     |                                   |
| broken wide white line            |                                   |
| continuously with the general     |                                   |
| purpose lanes. A single solid     |                                   |
| wide white line can also be used  |                                   |
| where enter/exit movements are    |                                   |
| discouraged. For a buffer         |                                   |
| separated HOV lane, a double      |                                   |
| solid white or yellow line is     |                                   |
| general used where crossing is    |                                   |
| prohibited.                       |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| There have been very limited      |                                   |
| efforts to quantitatively         |                                   |
| measures and evaluate pros and    |                                   |
| cons of having the two different  |                                   |
| marking patterns. Why can one     |                                   |
| pattern be used regardless the    |                                   |
| hours of operation? Why can a     |                                   |
| full-time facility have           |                                   |
| continuous access? What are the   |                                   |
| accident rates with different     |                                   |
| types of marking patterns?        |                                   |
| Elimination of the buffer may     |                                   |
| save right-of-way, and having     |                                   |
| continuous access may allow for   |                                   |
| more adequate weaving for         |                                   |
| vehicles exiting the HOV lane.    |                                   |
| However, would this increase HOV  |                                   |
| exposure to speed differentials   |                                   |
| and incidents in mainlines,       |                                   |
| increase weaving and merging      |                                   |
| movements due to easier           |                                   |
| ingress/egress, and increase      |                                   |
| violation rates? What design and  |                                   |
| enforcement issues should be      |                                   |
| considered?                       |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| There are a wide variety of       |                                   |
| differences among states on how   |                                   |
| they each mark their concurrent   |                                   |
| flow HOV lanes. Research is       |                                   |
| needed to identify the pros and   |                                   |
| cons of the different types of    |                                   |
| marking patterns. Recommendations |                                   |
| on how to improve markings on     |                                   |
| these facilities as well as       |                                   |
| identification of the best        |                                   |
| practice for uniform consistency  |                                   |
| are also needed.                  |                                   |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| Suggested Approach:               |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| This research will address the    |                                   |
| impact of different marking       |                                   |
| patterns on HOV facility          |                                   |
| operations, safety, and           |                                   |
| enforcement. Operational and      |                                   |
| safety data will be reviewed,     |                                   |
| quantitative measures will be     |                                   |
| developed; and case studies will  |                                   |
| be performed to evaluate the pros |                                   |
| and cons of different types of    |                                   |
| markings for HOV lanes. Finally   |                                   |
| recommendations on markings for   |                                   |
| concurrent flow HOV facilities    |                                   |
| will be made.                     |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| The suggested approach to the     |                                   |
| project include:                  |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| -   Investigate agency standards  |                                   |
|     and practice across the       |                                   |
|     nation with respect to        |                                   |
|     markings and delineation for  |                                   |
|     concurrent flow HOV lanes     |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| -   Review relevant MUTCD         |                                   |
|     sections and compare MUTCD    |                                   |
|     standards to current agency   |                                   |
|     practices                     |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| -   Conduct surveys/study         |                                   |
|     groups/focus groups to        |                                   |
|     investigate and evaluate      |                                   |
|     users' understanding with     |                                   |
|     various markings              |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| -   Define and develop            |                                   |
|     quantitative measures and     |                                   |
|     evaluation methodology        |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| -   Identify case study locations |                                   |
|     and perform data collection   |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| -   Conduct analysis and          |                                   |
|     evaluation                    |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| -   Develop recommended "best     |                                   |
|     practice"                     |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| -   Document study findings in a  |                                   |
|     research report               |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| -   Identify and recommend        |                                   |
|     research needs to advance     |                                   |
|     this subject area             |                                   |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| Products:                         |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| -   A research report             |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| -   Outreach material             |                                   |
|     (presentation and fact sheet) |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| -   A white paper identifying     |                                   |
|     research needs to advance     |                                   |
|     this subject area             |                                   |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| End Users (Product Customer):     |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| -   The intended audience of      |                                   |
|     these products includes       |                                   |
|     representative state DOTs,    |                                   |
|     Metropolitan Planning         |                                   |
|     Organizations, transit        |                                   |
|     agencies, enforcement         |                                   |
|     agencies and others having a  |                                   |
|     role in the planning, design, |                                   |
|     management, operation,        |                                   |
|     maintenance, and enforcement  |                                   |
|     of HOV facilities             |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| -   Targeted end users of the     |                                   |
|     report include designers and  |                                   |
|     operators of HOV lanes,       |                                   |
|     including state DOT's,        |                                   |
|     transit and police agencies,  |                                   |
|     FHWA, FTA and other local and |                                   |
|     regional agencies involved in |                                   |
|     the planning, design and      |                                   |
|     operation of HOV facilities.  |                                   |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| Training, Outreach, and           |                                   |
| Distribution Plan:                |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| -Outreach and awareness as to the |                                   |
| availability of the product       |                                   |
| through professional              |                                   |
| organizations.                    |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| -Publicized through FHWA          |                                   |
| Divisions, Resource Centers and   |                                   |
| related program activities.       |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| -The handbook will be available   |                                   |
| via CD as well as traditional     |                                   |
| print format.                     |                                   |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| Rough Order of Magnitude Cost:    | Comments:                         |
|                                   |                                   |
| Person Hours:                     | -Direct costs include limited     |
|                                   | funding to accommodate any        |
| Labor Cost: [\$]{.underline}      | interaction and review of         |
|                                   | practitioners on the development  |
| Direct Costs: [\$]{.underline}    | of this product and to obtain any |
|                                   | available information from        |
| Total Cost: [\$                   | agencies via interviews and       |
| 200,000]{.underline}              | on-site visits to support         |
|                                   | development of case studies.      |
|                                   |                                   |
|                                   | -Support initial distribution of  |
|                                   | limited number of copies to each  |
|                                   | State DOT.                        |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| In-Kind Support or Other Funding  |                                   |
| (Beyond SP&R):                    |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| -FHWA and pooled fund             |                                   |
| participants technical support    |                                   |
| and project management in the     |                                   |
| development of the project        |                                   |
| proposal, scope and product       |                                   |
| development.                      |                                   |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| Suggested Schedule for Major      |                                   |
| Milestones:                       |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| -16-20 months                     |                                   |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+
| Benefits:                         |                                   |
|                                   |                                   |
| Outcomes will allow HOV           |                                   |
| designers, reviewers and          |                                   |
| operators to more effectively     |                                   |
| implement and operate HOV lanes   |                                   |
| in a safe manner. The results     |                                   |
| will also help planners and       |                                   |
| implementers to interrogate       |                                   |
| design and operational decisions  |                                   |
| and various levels in the         |                                   |
| regional, corridor and            |                                   |
| project-specific setting. Greater |                                   |
| cost effectiveness and design     |                                   |
| should result.                    |                                   |
+-----------------------------------+-----------------------------------+