SAFETY AND OPERATIONAL CONCERNS IN THE INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENT PRIORITIZING PROCESS

Intersections considered for potential improvements need to be analyzed in terms of their safety, geometric, and operational conditions. These possible improvements to the existing conditions at these intersections are necessary because of traffic demand increases and increased safety problems. The considerations of safety and operational aspects in the prioritizing process for intersection improvements could help in the allocation of limited funds for these improvement projects. This paper presents results obtained from a research project performed to develop a new procedure that considers both safety performance and traffic operational performance to prioritize intersections for safety improvements. Benefit to cost ratio was considered for the safety aspect, and average stop delay was considered for the operational aspect. The developed procedure includes a new model obtained through the use of a utility function and a logit model. In order to obtain the model, field data were collected for traffic turning movements and geometric conditions. Information databases and crash data were also reviewed. To test the model, a case study was performed. Three priority lists for 1996 were determined as the application of the new procedure. The first priority list was based on safety factors, the second priority list was based on operational factors, and the third priority list was based on safety and operational factors.