Study Details

Study Title: Potential Crash Reduction Benefits of Shoulder Rumble Strips in Two-Lane Rural Highways

Authors: Khan et al.

Publication Date:JAN, 2014

Abstract: This paper examines the effectiveness of shoulder rumble strips in reducing run-off-the-road(ROR) crashes on two-lane rural highways using the Empirical Bayes (EB) Before-and-After analysis method. The comprehensive procedure adopted for developing the safety performance function of EB analysis also considers the effects of roadway geometry and paved right shoulder width on the effectiveness of shoulder rumble strips. The results of this study demonstrate the safety benefits of shoulder rumble strips in reducing the ROR crashes on two-lane rural highways using the State of Idaho 2001-2009 crash data. The study finds a 14% reduction in all ROR crashes after the installation of shoulder rumble strips on 178.63-miles of two-lane rural highways in Idaho. The results indicate that shoulder rumble strips were most effective on roads with relatively moderate curvature and right paved shoulder width of 3 feet and more.

Study Citation: Khan, M., A. Abdel-Rahim, and C.J.Williams., Potential Crash Reduction Benefits of Shoulder Rumble Strips in Two-Lane Rural Highways. Presented at the 93rd Annual Meeting of the Transportation Research Board, Washington, D.C., (2014).


CMFs Associated With This Study

Category: Shoulder treatments

Countermeasure: Install shoulder rumble strips

CMF CRF(%)QualityCrash TypeCrash SeverityRoadway TypeArea Type
0.86144 StarsRun off roadAllNot specifiedRural