Highway & Network Management

Winter weather often brings traffic chaos, and authorities have to be ready to tackle it as Patrick Smith reports Good winter maintenance is rarely noticed, and it is only when things go wrong that it becomes a public issue. "When sudden bouts of cold weather bring traffic chaos, icy roads receive high-profile coverage and local authorities are criticised, often unfairly, for not affording greater protection," says the Highways Term Maintenance Association (HTMA), the UK's top trade body for road mainten

Forty-four state agencies currently rely on Daktronics for a total of more than 3,500 dynamic message signs (DMS) to provide important information to motorists. As soon as a new construction project begins, approaching motorists need to know exactly what to expect. Permanent DMS provide the information ahead of time, ahead of the congestion.

Raising awareness of safety in highway work zones is a global issue, and various initiatives highlight this as Patrick Smith reports. So seriously is work zone safety taken in the United States that each year since 1999 a special week has been set aside to highlight it. Each year in April, National Work Zone Awareness Week is held to bring national attention to motorist and worker safety and mobility issues in work zones.

Overweight vehicles cause enormous damage to road structures but they can be caught, even at high speed. Weigh-in-motion or WIM devices are designed to capture and record axle weights and gross vehicle weights as vehicles drive over a measurement site.