Roadway Departure Strategic Plan June 2020 

 

Each year Roadway Departures account for over half of all traffic 

fatalities in the United States. The Federal Highway Administration 

(FHWA) Roadway Departure (RwD) Team developed 

this Strategic Plan to provide a common vision for 

research, policy, and implementation to address these 

crashes. 

The FHWA Roadway Departure Vision, 

Mission, and Goal

Vision 

Pursue a proactive approach to addressing lane 

departure crashes on the Road to Zero.

Mission 

Exercise leadership in the highway community to 

reduce the risk of RwD-related fatalities and serious 

injuries. The FHWA’s primary leadership role is with the 

engineering community and aims to assist transportation agencies to achieve their RwD-related SHSP goals through: 

• Development, evaluation and deployment of life-saving countermeasures; and, 

• Promoting data-driven application of safety treatments.

Goal

Reduce annual average national RwD fatalities to 10,000 by the year 2030. The FHWA RwD Team will pursue this goal by 

influencing both internal and external partners to plan strategically, implement RwD countermeasures systemically 

based on data, and promote safety performance in all facets of transportation decision-making. 
The Role of the Roadway Departure Strategic Plan

This Strategic Plan primarily serves as a tool to 

provide long-term focus for the FHWA RwD Team 

efforts using a data-driven approach. The FHWA 

defines RwD Crashes as those in which a vehicle 

crosses an edge line, a center line, or otherwise 

leaves the traveled way (also called lane 

departure by AASHTO). When considering the 

most harmful event in RwD fatalities, three crash 

types make up over 70 percent of the crashes. 

These three, head-on collisions, rollovers, and 

trees, are the primary emphasis of this strategic 

plan. Secondary emphasis is placed on reducing 

crashes with other fixed objects, including signs, 

poles, signals, and barriers as well as crashes 

involving roadside ditches and embankments. 

Some headway has been made in reducing the 

severity of rollover crashes as shown below. 

 

 RwD Emphasis Area Fatality Trends 

Defining Roadway Departure Crashes (aka Lane Departure): 

“A crash in which a vehicle crosses an edge line, a center line, or otherwise leaves the traveled way.” 

RwD Fatalities by Most Harmful Event 

(FARS 2016 - 2018 average annual)
Internal Efforts

The RwD Team includes core members from three safety units within FHWA, each of which provide support and 

resources to Division Offices. Each of these units and the Divisions fulfill varying needs in FHWA’s efforts to reduce RwD 

fatalities. The primary roles of each follow.

• The Office of Safety develops and updates policy and guidance related to new and existing research, and to 

market best practices and innovative solutions to State and local transportation agencies. 

• The Office of Safety R&D analyzes RwD issues through research and development.

• The Resource Center Safety and Design delivers knowledge critical in saving lives via technical assistance and 

training. 

• Division Offices provides guidance, oversight and assistance in the implementation of RwD safety 

countermeasures within specific States or federal land agencies. 

The RwD Team uses an integrated roadmap process to specify short-term and mid-term efforts to achieve the goals of 

the Strategic Plan. It is reviewed and updated annually. Efforts in the RwD Roadmap include projects aligned under 

three objectives: 

1. Keep vehicles on the roadway and in their directional lane, 

2. Reduce the potential for crashes when vehicles leave their lane or the roadway, and

3. Minimize the severity when roadway departure crashes occur. 

The RwD Roadmap also includes projects in RwD analysis, research and outreach that span all three objectives. Because 

the roadmap process is integrated, there are teams considering projects for each primary emphasis area that coordinate 

with other headquarter, research and field offices within FHWA and other DOT agencies to gain technical and policy 

knowledge in planning and implementation. 

Influence on External Efforts

The FHWA does not own or operate highways. However, they can exert their influence in the form of partnering with 

highway agencies and organizations that do have that jurisdiction and serve as a conduit to spread noteworthy safety 

practices and improve the knowledge base of agencies to improve safety. The RwD Team’s key focus with its partners 

will include: 

• Assistance to develop action plans in cooperation with States, LTAP Centers, local, federal and tribal agencies to 

systemically apply highly effective RwD countermeasures to the road network based on the best available data. 

The plans will consider the three primary emphasis areas and where proven lane departure countermeasures 

are most appropriate.

• Research proposals submitted and supported through NCHRP and internally as appropriate to gain a better 

understanding of the RwD problems and treatment options.

• Technology Transfer through training, technical assistance, and Peer Exchanges to accelerate deployment of 

proven countermeasures through effective communication.

• Partnerships to increase experiments, demonstrations, and evaluations of new technologies and treatments. 
Roadway Departure Head-On Collisions

RwDs involving cross center line or cross median 

events that resulted in vehicle collisions were the 

most harmful event in 27 percent of RwD fatalities. 

Since 85 percent of these head-on roadway 

departure fatalities are on undivided roadways, a 

major focus of this primary emphasis area is 

addressing cross-centerline crashes and with less 

weight placed on cross median issues. Additional 

research and development of countermeasures for 

undivided highways will continue to be a focus for the foreseeable future. Crash data also indicates that the focus 

should remain on high-speed roadways, with more emphasis in rural areas while not ignoring urban areas. Detailed 

analysis found that in rural areas, the non-interstate freeways and expressways are significantly over-represented for 

this crash type, and other principal arterials and minor arterials are also somewhat over-represented compared to all 

roadway departures and all crashes. 

Curves are only slightly over-represented for head-on roadway departures compared to all crashes, indicating focus 

should be on both tangents and curves. Detailed analysis showed that a common issue in urban areas is head-on lane 

departures due to drivers cutting to the inside of the curve, across the center line, while in rural areas these head-on 

crashes were in over-represented in tangent sections. Detailed analysis showed that while lane departures are only 

slightly over-represented in wet, snowy, and icy conditions, this is more of an issue in rural areas. 

Strategies to keep vehicles in their lane to prevent head-on collisions include installation of:

• Center line rumble stripes; and

• Friction treatments in curves.

Strategies to reduce the potential for head-on collisions when vehicles do leave their lanes include application of:

• Increased Separation between Opposing Lanes, particularly in curves.

• Inclusion of SafetyEdgeSM on all paving projects.

Strategies to minimize the severity of roadway departures into opposing traffic lanes include appropriate:

• Design and placement of barriers in medians

• Barrier usage in narrow medians

Credit: skalapendra/iStock/Thinkstock 

RwD Head-on Fatalities as percent of all RwD Fatalities 

(FARS 2016 - 2018 average annual)
Roadway Departure Rollovers

The most harmful event in 26 percent of fatalities resulting from a 

roadway departure is a rollover. Approximately three-quarters of 

these fatal crashes occur in rural areas and 72 percent are where 

posted speed limits are at or above 50 mph. While these crashes have 

been reduced slightly in recent years in tangent sections, they 

continue to be significantly over-represented in curves. Detailed 

analysis found that rollovers are problematic both in curves in either 

direction for the vehicle, although they do happen somewhat more 

frequently on the outside of the curve. As with all crashes, the 

majority occur in dry pavement conditions. These fatalities are also 

somewhat over-represented on rural two-way undivided roads, 

especially collectors and local roads.

Strategies to keep vehicles on the roadway to prevent rollovers include installation of:

• Improved curve delineation;

• Friction treatments in curves and other spot locations; and

• Edge line and shoulder rumble strips.

Strategies to reduce the potential for rollovers when vehicles do leave the roadway include application of:

• SafetyEdgeSM on all paving projects;

• Maintained clear zones, especially on the outside of rural curves; and 

• Traversable roadside slopes.

Strategies to minimize the severity of roadway departures by reducing the potential for rollovers include appropriate 

specifications and installation of:

• Barriers to shield hazards, including:

- Trees and shrubbery

- Other fixed objects

- Slopes, particularly on the outside of curves

• Other Safety Hardware

Credit: Bigmouse/iStock/Thinkstock 

RwD Rollover Fatalities as percent of all RwD Fatalities 

(FARS 2016 - 2018 average annual)
Tree Crashes

The most harmful event in 19 percent of RwD fatalities involves trees or 

shrubs on the roadside. A continued emphasis on removing or otherwise 

addressing these roadside obstacles and maintaining the clear zone is in 

order. The crash data indicate the need to address this on high- and 

medium-speed roadways in both rural and urban areas, to meet the RwD 

goals. Trees are unique from other fixed objects in that (with some 

exceptions) they are not “installed”. In addition, they present a greater 

hazard the larger they grow, and they multiply over time, encroaching ever 

closer to the roadway if maintenance is not addressed. While context is 

important to roadside designs, trees have not been proven to slow traffic. 

Detailed analysis indicates that in rural areas these fatalities are somewhat 

over-represented in wet and icy conditions. Since tree crashes are 

particularly over-represented in curves, agencies can initially focus clearing 

efforts on the outside of curves and consider if they are applying the recommendations of the AASHTO Roadside Design 

Guide to apply wider clear zone on the outside of curves. 

Strategies to keep vehicles on the roadway to prevent tree crashes include installation of:

• Edge line and shoulder rumble strips;

• Improved curve delineation; and

• Friction treatments in curves.

Strategies to reduce the potential for collisions with trees when vehicles do leave the roadway include application of:

• Clear zone improvements and maintenance, particularly on the outside of curves.

Strategies to minimize the severity of roadway departures by reducing the potential for tree crashes include 

appropriate specifications and installation regarding:

• Design, Selection and Placement of Barriers.

Credit: skalapendra/iStock/Thinkstock 

RwD Tree Fatalities as percent of all RwD Fatalities 

(FARS 2016 - 2018 average annual) 
FHWA Roadway Departure Team Action Items within the Next Five Years

Objective 1: Keep vehicles on the roadway, in their appropriate directional lane.

A. Continue to promote and provide training on retroreflectivity, lighting design, curve signing, HFST, and rumble 

strips.

B. Develop materials to assist local agencies with systemic analysis and application of RwD countermeasures, 

particularly curve signing, pavement markings, HFST and rumble strips.

C. Encourage transportation agencies to develop safety action plans to identify and prioritize RwD countermeasure 

implementation.

D. Evaluate the effectiveness of newer delineation practices for reducing curve crashes.

E. Demonstrate Continuous Friction Measurement tools for testing and screening pavement friction.

F. Develop an installation checklist for HFST and improved methods for testing HFST materials. 

G. Evaluate sinusoidal rumble strips and develop recommendations for where to use instead of conventional designs. 

Objective 2: Reduce the potential for crashes when vehicles leave their lane or the roadway. 

A. Continue to promote and provide training on clear zones and SafetyEdgeSM. 

B. Promote best practices and develop case studies of clear zones practices that reduce rollover potential.

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C. Encourage wider implementation of SafetyEdgeSM, particularly to local agencies. 

D. Promote experimentation and evaluation of increased separation between opposing traffic on undivided highways. 

E. Evaluate the effectiveness of removing trees and other fixed objects in curves, including maintenance practices 

such as mowing and clearing.

F. Develop joint guidelines with the Office of Planning, Environment, and Realty for landscaping clear zones, and 

encourage States to adopt and implement them.

G. Evaluate effectiveness of the delineation for addressing objects in the clear zone.

Objective 3: Minimize the severity of crashes that do occur.

A. Continue to promote and provide training on designing and installing hardware

B. Assist transportation agencies in updating their standards and policies.

C. Continue to provide national eligibility determinations for hardware systems until an alternative national process 

is developed. 

D. Assist transportation agencies in development of multi-State or national In-Service Performance Evaluations.

E. Develop, improve, and utilize finite element models of vehicles, hardware, and roadside to aid in RwD research, 

which will explore potential benefits and develop guidance for strategically recognized issues. 

F. Develop guidance for tradeoffs to reduce rollovers, especially on curves, using various slope shapes and various 

types of barriers.

G. Develop case studies and data-driven guidance on the use of barrier on previously undivided roads.

H. Explore the trade-offs of performance and maintenance issues for barrier in narrow medians.

1 NCHRP Report 911, Guidelines for Traversability of Roadside Slopes, 2019.