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                        Market Analysis of Collecting Fundamental Roadway Data Elements to Support the Highway Safety Improvement Program


            
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                Fundamental Data Elements for HSIP (FDE/HSIP)
While MIRE provides a comprehensive listing of roadway and traffic data elements, it may not be feasible for States to collect all of the 200+ MIRE elements and integrate them into their existing programs.  State departments of transportation (DOTs), particularly highway safety agencies, are facing increasing demands and decreasing resources. Additionally, the 23 CFR 924 provides only general information on how safety data should be used; it does not provide details on specific data elements *(5)*.  There remains a need for information on a minimum set of fundamental roadway and traffic elements that DOTs should be collecting to support their HSIPs.

In order to address the States’ safety data improvements challenges, the FHWA held a series of information gathering sessions and convened a TWG. The purpose of the TWG was to determine the roadway and traffic data elements that States should be collecting, what States are capable of collecting given the current economic environment, and the importance of using roadway and traffic data in the safety analysis process.

States should have a common statewide location referencing system, such as geographic information system (GIS) or a linear referencing system, on all public roads.  This will enable States to locate high crash locations on all public roads in the State.  As States expand their inventories, this common system will enable States to link these locations with additional data systems, such as roadway and traffic data.

States should also be collecting a set of minimum roadway and traffic data elements on all public roads that are fundamental to support a State’s HSIP - the FDE/HSIP.  These are based on the elements needed to apply HSM roadway safety management (Part B) procedures using network screening analytical tools (such as SafetyAnalyst), are a subset of MIRE, and duplicate many of HPMS full extent elements that States are already required to collect on Federal-aid Highways. The FDE/HSIP are comprised of roadway segment, intersection, and ramp elements as shown in Table 3.

The FDE/HSIP are a basic set of elements an agency would need to conduct effective, enhanced safety analysis independent of the specific analysis tools used or methods applied.  While the FDE/HSIP were selected in part based on the basic data requirements of existing tools such as the HSM and related SafetyAnalyst, they are not exclusive to these tools. The FHWA recognizes that many States are developing analysis tools in-house that will help to support their HSIPs.  All States should be moving towards using analysis tools and having the FDE/HSIP available to utilize these tools, regardless of whether they are the tools developed through Federal efforts or they are developed in-house.

**Table 3. FDE/HSIP Elements.**

**FDE/HSIP Elements**
			**Definition****Roadway Segment****Segment ID***
			Unique segment identifier.**Route Name***
			Signed numeric value for the roadway segment.**Alternate Route Name***
			The route or street name, where different from route number.**Route Type***
			Federal-aid/NHS route type.**Area Type***
			The rural or urban designation based on Census urban boundary and population.**Date Opened to Traffic**
			The date at which the site was opened to traffic.**Start Location***
			The location of the starting point of the roadway segment.**End Location***
			The location of the ending point of the roadway segment.**Segment Length***
			The length of the segment.**Segment Direction**
			Direction of inventory if divided roads are inventoried in each direction.**Roadway Class***
			The functional class of the segment.**Median Type**
			The type of median present on the segment.**Access Control***
			The degree of access control.**Two-Way vs. One-Way Operation***
			Indication of whether the segment operates as a one- or two-way roadway.**Number of Through Lanes***
			The total number of through lanes on the segment. This excludes turn lanes and auxiliary lanes.**Interchange Influence Area on Mainline Freeway**
			The value of this item indicates whether or not a roadway is within an interchange influence area.**AADT***
			The average number of vehicles passing through a segment from both directions of the mainline route for all days of a specified year.**AADT Year***
			Year of AADT.**Intersection****Intersection ID**
			A unique junction identifier.**Location**
			Location of the center of the junction on the first intersecting route (e.g., route-milepost).**Intersection Type**
			The type of geometric configuration that best describes the intersection/junction.**Date Opened to Traffic**
			The date at which the site was opened to traffic.**Traffic Control Type**
			Traffic control present at intersection/junction.**Major Road AADT**
			The Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT) on the approach leg of the intersection/junction.**Major Road AADT Year**
			The year of the Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT) on the approach leg of the intersection/junction.**Minor Road AADT**
			The Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT) on the approach leg of the intersection/junction.**Minor Road AADT Year**
			The year of the Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT) on the approach leg of the intersection/junction.**Intersection Leg ID**
			A unique identifier for each approach of an intersection.**Leg Type**
			Specifies the major/minor road classification of this leg relative to the other legs in the intersection.**Leg Segment ID**
			A unique identifier for the segment associated with this leg.**Ramp/Interchange****Ramp ID***
			An identifier for each ramp that is part of a given interchange. This defines which ramp the following elements are describing.**Date Opened to Traffic**
			The date at which the site was opened to traffic.**Start Location**
			Location on the roadway at the beginning ramp terminal (e.g., route-milepost for that roadway) if the ramp connects with a roadway at that point.**Ramp Type**
			Indicates whether the ramp is used to enter or exit a freeway, or connect two freeways.**Ramp/Interchange Configuration**
			Describes the characterization of the design of the ramp.**Ramp Length**
			Length of ramp.**Ramp AADT***
			AADT on ramp.**Ramp AADT Year**
			Year of AADT on ramp.*HPMS full extent elements required on all Federal-aid highways and ramps located within grade-separated interchanges, i.e., NHS and all functional systems excluding rural minor collectors and locals.

In 2011, the FHWA Office of Safety released a guidance memorandum on the fundamental data elements that States should be collecting and incorporating into their safety analyses to support their HSIPs and indicate on what roadways they should be collecting data*.*  In addition to the memorandum, the FHWA Office of Safety has also developed the *Background Report: Guidance for Roadway Safety Data to Support the Highway Safety Improvement Program,*to support the guidance set forth in memorandum and act as a counterpart to this analysis *(7)*.  The *Background Report* provides additional detail on FDE/HSIP, existing and emerging data collection methodologies, estimated costs of collection (based on the results of this market analysis), potential funding sources, and model performance measures*.*
      
  Book traversal links for Fundamental Data Elements for HSIP (FDE/HSIP)
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                Book:Market Analysis of Collecting Fundamental Roadway Data Elements to Support the Highway Safety Improvement Program
              Executive Summary
                Introduction
                Objective
                Background
                Fundamental Data Elements for HSIP (FDE/HSIP)
                Literature Review
                Methodology
                Results
                Summary
                References
                Appendix A: Literature Matrix U.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

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