Infrastructure

Left Turn Calming Infrastructure Comes to Chicago

July 28, 2023 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

Last year, Chicago began to roll out some infrastructure as a part of a trial initiative to enhance traffic safety. The city describes the new implements as “traffic calming.” They include rubber speed bumps, vertical posts, and hardened centerlines. The measures are meant to mitigate risks associated with left turns which are a notoriously dangerous maneuver. The goal is to promote safer speeds, prevent diagonal path crossings, and enhance visibility for pedestrians. In this post, we will go over some of the benefits of these infrastructure enhancements, including their specific features, benefits, and the rationale behind their implementation.

A Closer Look at Chicago’s Left Turn-Calming Infrastructure

Rubber Speed Bumps:

Strategically placed rubber speed bumps are one of the main elements of Chicago’s infrastructure for calming left turns. When approaching and navigating a left turn, the bumps are intended to encourage slower turning speeds. Introducing physical obstacles that necessitate slower speeds can significantly decrease the chance of collisions due to excessive speed or difficulty with maneuvering. Rubber speed bumps are meant to remind drivers to exercise caution and reduce their speed when making left turns, ultimately contributing to improved road safety.

Vertical Posts:

One crucial aspect of guiding drivers during left turns is the implementation of vertical posts. These posts are positioned in intersections to prevent drivers from taking a diagonal path during the left turn. By causing vehicles to adhere to designated paths, the risk of collisions with traffic surrounding the turn is reduced. A safer turning environment is encouraged with these visual cues by discouraging turns that are too narrow or too wide.

Hardened Centerlines:

Chicago’s left turn calming infrastructure also includes the implementation of hardened centerlines at intersections. These lines are positioned in the pavement to demarcate between pedestrian crossing zones and left-turning vehicles. Hardened centerlines improve drivers’ visibility of pedestrians during left turns by providing a clear visual distinction. This allows drivers to anticipate pedestrian movements so that they can prepare to stop at a particular point. Both pedestrians and drivers may benefit from the implementation of hardened center lines.

The Intended Benefits:

Safer Speeds:

Rubber speed bumps are meant to encourage drivers to slow down when making their left turn. Slowing down vehicles provides more time for drivers to react to possible hazards. Safer speeds contribute to a more predictable and controlled driving environment, potentially reducing the severity and frequency of collisions and creating a safer environment for pedestrians, drivers, and passengers.

Enhanced Pedestrian Safety:

The incorporation of vertical posts and hardened centerlines in Chicago’s left turn calming infrastructure is meant to enhance pedestrian safety. Because vertical posts minimize taking shortcuts through crosswalks, potential collisions with cars and pedestrians are decreased. Hardened center lines increase drivers’ visibility and awareness of pedestrians which might be the difference between a safe left turn and a collision. The calming infrastructure promotes greater confidence and security for those crossing intersections by creating a safer pedestrian environment.

Improved Turn Accuracy:

Chicago’s left turn calming infrastructure ensures that drivers follow designated turning paths accurately. Potential encroachment into other lanes or crosswalks is less likely when vertical posts are placed to help drivers position their left turn. Accurate turns reduce the risk of collisions with other vehicles and contribute to a more efficient and harmonious road network.

Reasons for Implementing Left Turn Calming Infrastructure in the First Place:

Mitigating Collision Risks:

Left turns present inherent potential risks and challenges, including driver distraction, excessive speed, and dangerous turning trajectories. By implementing left turn calming infrastructure, Chicago aims to mitigate these risk factors and address the risks of collision. At its core, the initiative is meant to reduce the number of collisions associated with left turns.

Pedestrian Protection:

Chicago’s commitment to pedestrian safety is a driving force behind the implementation of left turn calming infrastructure. Pedestrians face heightened risks when crossing a busy intersection with lots of left-turning vehicles, and vertical posts as well as hardened center lines are meant to reduce these risks.

Enhancing Traffic Efficiency:

The introduction of left turn calming infrastructure also aims to enhance traffic efficiency and flow. By reducing conflicts and promoting accurate turning paths, the initiative intends to reduce congestion and delays caused by left turns. The resulting smooth traffic flow benefits drivers and pedestrians, making the road network more efficient and improving the commuting experience.

While the left turn calming infrastructure implemented in Chicago shows promising results, exploring potential alternatives and advancements is crucial for improving traffic safety. Below are some potential alternatives to consider:

Intersection Warning Systems:

Intersection warning systems can provide real-time alerts to drivers approaching intersections. By using cameras, sensors, and algorithms, intersection warning systems aim to detect pedestrians and vehicles, giving advanced warnings about potential hazards. Drivers have more time to react and make safer decisions during left turns when intersection warning systems are in place

Intelligent Traffic Signal Systems:

There are specific types of signal systems that can help enhance left turn safety. By using real-time traffic data, intelligent traffic signal systems can control signal phases in real-time. This prioritizes safe left turns in order to reduce conflicts with other traffic. Not only can these systems improve safety, but timing signals appropriately can enhance the efficiency of traffic flow.

Through pilot programs and data analysis, it is vital that we consider alternative traffic safety infrastructure so that our intersections can be as safe as possible. When it comes to left turns, intelligent infrastructure that utilizes technology can help to reduce human error.

Chicago’s innovative left turn calming infrastructure, featuring vertical posts, rubber speed bumps, and hardened centerlines, is a good example of an action a city can take to reduce the risks associated with left turns. By preventing diagonal path crossings, improving visibility for pedestrians, and encouraging safer speeds, this initiative aims to reduce collisions, optimize traffic flow, and protect pedestrians. Chicago’s implementation of these traffic-calming treatments is a good first step to creating safer roads in our city. However, more data is needed to assess to effectiveness of this infrastructure, and we must be prepared to pivot and adjust if better options to enhance safety become available. Our city should continue focusing on left turns as a maneuver associated with dangers for drivers and pedestrians alike.

Boosted Infrastructure Funding is Crucial for the Sake of Roadway Safety

November 12, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

It’s clear that much of America’s infrastructure needs a lot of work, and President Joe Biden recently visited New Jersey as part of his campaign to garner support for legislation undergoing debate by Democrats in regards to the investment of trillions of dollars into projects to boost social welfare, climate change, and road safety across the country.

Biden, along with New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, discussed a state bridge that often cannot be closed without the use of sledgehammers. The two leaders cited this issue as evidence of major issues within infrastructure and the vast amount of reconstruction and repairs that are needed right now in many states.

The Portal Bridge is currently “a chokepoint, a bottleneck, an Achilles’ heel on the Northeast Corridor,” Biden said–a stark outlook for the most highly-used train bridge in the Western Hemisphere. The swing bridge owned by Amtrak Corp. and located over the Hackensack River is 110 years old, and “something goes wrong” about 15% of the time it’s opened, Biden said.

When the bridge needs to be closed, “literally, a sledgehammer [is needed to] knock it back into place–in the year 2021,” said Biden at the event for the bridge’s replacement groundbreaking. “Aging infrastructure like this is more than inconvenience or a nuisance–it’s an impediment.”

Biden has been working to collaborate with Senate moderates who have been concerned about social spending legislation costs, which were initially proposed to be $3.5 trillion for usage over ten years. In late October, Biden met with Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia, along with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, to reach a potential agreement regarding a smaller spending budget.

“This initiative is about betting on America, about believing in America,” said Biden. “Let’s get this done–let’s move.”

The bridge replacement project is the first initiative of the overall Gateway project, which will serve as a bridge-and-tunnel renovation and expansion initiative to boost train capacity across the Hudson River. Previously, around 820,000 rail passengers commuted between New York City and another Northeast city each day; because of this, bridge replacement project sponsors have expressed concern that any potential track failures could significantly hinder the economy of this area–a region that is vital to one-fifth of the gross domestic product within the United States.

Still, boosting the accessibility and safety of infrastructure is imperative. The more updated our infrastructure is, the safer our roadways are, and the fewer accidents and deaths we’ll see as a result.

“We see a lot of crashes occurring on roadways in disrepair and in dangerous construction locations, so it’s important to keep roads safe,” said Levinson and Stefani’s Ken Levinson. “When there’s not enough room on the shoulder and you break down, or there’s not an easy path to exit the tollway, or there’s an emergency medical situation, or inclement weather, it creates a lot of danger.”

When there is an obstacle or disruption on any given roadway, many people aren’t sure how to handle it in the safest way–and the possibility of a traffic incident skyrockets, Levinson explained.

“We’ve seen many cases where, in these danger zones, major crashes occur,” he said. “We’ve had cases where–because of mechanical problems–a vehicle has to pull over, and shortly thereafter, there is a major crash. We’ve had professional truck drivers that we represent that while they’re in the process of putting out safety cones, there’s a collision. This is partly because there’s not enough room on the shoulder, and partly because of the inattention of another trucker who has not been properly trained, so that goes directly to having safe roadways.”

For Biden’s economic plans–although specific details still need more clarity–Manchin is confident that Democrats will be able to reach a deal sooner than later. Progressive Democrats in the House have said in the past that they do not plan to vote for an additional infrastructure bill of $1 trillion that was already passed in the Senate until a larger social spending measure plan can be agreed upon.

Are Resilience Investments the Answer to Freight Booms?

September 29, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

“Our whole collective endeavor here is really designed to have the intermodal product be as competitive as possible in the truck,” said Oliver Wyman consulting firm partner of surface transportation, Adriene Bailey, at the recent Intermodal Association of North America’s Intermodal Expo.

Bailey also served as a moderator for the panel at the exposition, where participants from the intermodal freight industry debated the amount of investment funding that should be allocated toward resiliency-boosting infrastructure and other expenditures. The push for these kinds of infrastructure upgrades comes after the industry disruptions and demand surges brought about by the coronavirus pandemic.

The group discussed whether or not system overcapacity may lower overall efficiency while chassis availability continues to be a major issue for trucks moving containers. In fact, at the root of the overarching issue is that there is currently an excessive number of containers waiting on any given chassis for a longer period of time than necessary before they’re finally unloaded–meaning the equipment being used in those movements are occupied for days, according to Georgia Ports Authority director of strategic operations, Duke Acors.

The intermodal freight industry as a whole needs to make major changes to its turnover times if any efficiency improvements are going to become realistic, Acors added.

“I am not positive that if you threw another 5,000 chassis into the pool it would make a difference,” he lamented. “The entire supply chain needs to be evaluated.”

Still, there are not enough of the needed chassis types in the areas they are most necessary, causing the current difficulties for the intermodal industry to meet the demands of intermodal freight to increase quickly, explained C&K Trucking president, Mike Burton.

“Everything that we are focused on is…’What we can do to get more chassis?’” he said. “Having to chase all over the city to find a chassis kills our productivity and causes a number of delays.”

The exponential increase of shipments coming in and out of ports across the country in the wake of the pandemic–and the e-commerce boom that came along with it–has overwhelmed many industry professionals without any break in sight.

“We are now going [on] a year–14 months or so–that we have struggled,” said director of international sales at CSX Transportation, Jay Strongosky. “Every stakeholder is struggling, and no one is happy with their service.

CSX, for instance, had to hire an additional 300 conductors in 2021–more than were onboarded in the past two years combined, Strongosky added. This isn’t unique to his company, though. Many companies throughout the industry expected a potential recession during the first year of the pandemic and decided to lay off many employees. Now, with freight volume numbers ending up through the roof, those same companies are currently understaffed and scrambling to boost their recruitment numbers–in the midst of a worsened truck driver shortage.

Luckily, though, the Expo’s panelists unanimously agreed that the intermodal industry has been able to stay steadfast throughout various labor issues, emergency weather events, or other month-or-two-long disruptions that regularly occur throughout the country. Georgia Ports Authority, in particular, has worked to stay ahead of potential downfalls by keeping its capacity at around 20% above demand.

“Last year, we grew on 20%, so we are going to have to reevaluate,” added Acors.

Rising demand will also be aided by improvement projects taking place as soon as possible or in the long-term, such as Georgia Port’s efforts to speed the process of infrastructure initiatives like the project working to boost twenty foot-equivalent unit capacity by 650,000 at the state’s facility in Savannah.

Should the industry allocate capital to a rainy day fund, such as when UPS Inc. began stockpiling equipment before reaching the winter holiday shopping season? It’s hard to tell, because this unprecedented freight increase brought on by an unprecedented pandemic has been impossible to predict and incomparable to any regular busier-than-usual season.

“The pandemic is like a 100-year flood,” said Burton. “As a group, we are not solving it. Customers are not happy across the board. We are broken, and I don’t know that we can fix it.”

Chris Spear Looks Toward Upcoming Infrastructure Bill, Democrats Advance Transit and Climate Change Proposals

September 28, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

“Roads and bridges are trucking’s shop floor,” said American Trucking Associations President Chris Spear in a recent ATA Technology and Maintenance Council Fall Meeting and Transportation Technology Exhibition. “That’s where we work. And if we do not have good infrastructure, not only does trucking suffer, but so does the entire country.”

Spear has made clear his belief that the upcoming infrastructure package making waves on Capitol Hill will ultimately get the approval the trucking industry has hoped for, especially following the burden that has fallen on truckers’ shoulders throughout the pandemic era.

The $1 trillion infrastructure package is indeed “a very good bill,” Spear added, but it isn’t necessarily perfect, although “no bill ever is. But, even though it just happens to be going through Congress in a very toxic political environment, it is a very good piece of legislation that I believe will be signed into law very soon.”

The DRIVE-Safe Act’s inclusion in this bill will allow truck drivers over the age of 18 operate their commercial motor vehicles within interstate commerce–a move that Spear praises as a potential solution towards easing the current driver shortage.

“This industry is now recognized at a level we never thought possible,” Spear said. “It feels good to get a pat on the back. Truckers don’t have the luxury of telecommuting to work, but truckers rose to the challenge [during the pandemic], despite our drivers having no idea what kind of impact COVID would have on them or their families.”

After House Democrats advanced the climate change and transit proposals in the transportation budget bill–part of Democrats’ $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation bill–chamber leaders are expected to finalize overall proposal plans by the end of September.

“From tackling climate change, to addressing racial and environmental injustices, to building back better after the COVID-19 pandemic, our nation faces big challenges.” said Chairman Peter DeFazio following the panel’s approval of the budget bill. “By advancing this legislation, we’re taking a key step forward in addressing those challenges.”

The transportation measure would allocate $10 billion for low-income communities, $6 billion for local surface transportation priority projects (with specific funding at congressional districts), $4 billion for greenhouse gas emissions reduction projects across surface transportation corridors, and $4 billion for safety programs and transportation equity efforts. Another $2.5 billion will be dedicated to port infrastructure projects and freight supply chain resilience projects, $1 billion will be dedicated to low-emission tech project developments through the U.S. Department of Transportation, $1 billion will be offered to energy-efficient building promotion through the U.S. General Services Administration, and an additional $500 million will be offered to the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

“With this legislation, we can reduce carbon pollution from the transportation sector that’s driving the climate crisis and make communities more resilient to extreme weather events, connect people with good-paying jobs and affordable housing, address the planning mistakes of the past by reconnecting communities, make meaningful investments to plan or and develop high-speed rail projects, provide more people [with] access to clean water, and make our aviation and maritime sectors greener,” explain DeFazio.

The transportation budget bill will likely be included in the $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation legislation by the House Democratic Caucus, with major measures working to boost electric vehicle infrastructure, improve climate change infrastructure resilience, implement social safety net improvements, and support childcare and elderly healthcare assistance. Democratic leaders within the Senate are also aiming to legislate on the bill in September.

Social infrastructure plan-related economic benefits, along with climate change improvements, are the main focus of Biden’s ‘Build Back Better’ agenda.

“My ‘Build Back Better’ plan calls for significant new investments in upgrading research infrastructure [and] laboratories all across the country,” Biden said. “We’ll be making one of those breakthroughs in solar and wind [with] storage out of these facilities. [We’ll] out-innovate the rest of the world and drive down the costs of renewable energy.”

These improvements have indeed been a long time coming, democrats say.

“Senate Democrats have been working around the clock for weeks and months with our House colleagues and the Biden administration on the ‘Build Back Better’ agenda,” said Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. “We know the American people are facing challenges of monumental proportion. So, we must–and we will–pass legislation that meets the moment.

Freight Movement Faces Challenges as NYC Expressway Undergoes Improvements

August 23, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

In an effort to reduce overall truck traffic on the corridor route between New York City and Interstate 278, and to increase the lifespan of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway cantilever, officials in New York City have released a new infrastructure-boosting plan.

The four-part plan was unveiled by Bill de Blasio, the Mayor of New York City, and Henry Gutman, the Commissioner for the New York City Department of Transportation. Because the expressway route, nicknamed the BQE, also includes a triple cantilever carrying three levels of city traffic, the officials have stated that these four parts will mainly consist of developing a community-focused plan for the corridor itself, preserving the structure of the cantilever, boosting overall enforcement and monitoring efforts, and implementing both short- and long-term maintenance improvements.

Through these efforts, the New York City Police Department will increase its enforcement and monitoring throughout the corridor, deploying smaller units for a few days at a time that will be working to steadily increase traffic management efforts in this area.

Additionally, weigh-in-motion technology will be installed by New York City to be able to fine overweight trucks automatically, as part of the plan’s comprehensive monitoring and traffic management methods outlined in the announcement.

“A critical piece of prolonging the life of the roadway is taking the enforcement of overweight trucks seriously,” explained Jo Anne Simon of Brooklyn, a New York State Assembly member.

Right now, the largest two focuses for state officials are boosting truck regulation enforcement efforts and reducing the number of highly-congested corridor lanes currently present– a wholly unnecessary and potentially detrimental course of action, as explained by Kendra Hems, President of the Trucking Association of New York.

“At a time when we’re trying to focus on addressing emissions and [the] reduction of greenhouse gas, it just doesn’t make sense that we would increase congestion instead of reduce it,” Hems said. “To drop that [corridor segment] down to two lanes is just going to make that situation much worse and put a lot of pressure on the trucking industry in terms of hours-of-service constraints.”

Specifically, according to the plan, a portion of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway will see lane markings being shifted in order to decrease the number of lanes from three lanes in each direction to two in each direction. This alignment change will occur in the segment of the expressway located between Atlantic Avenue and the Brooklyn Bridge, and will provide a shoulder as well as two wider lanes as opposed to the currently-in-place three narrow lanes. According to the plan, this shift will work to help reduce the overall weight present at any given time along this segment of the BQE, as well as reduce the number breakdowns and collisions, which often cause major delays.

The Trucking Association of New York will often back many sensible methods of transportation when necessary, but trucks do indeed need to be able to make their final deliveries in an efficient and timely manner, of course, and trucking traffic heavily relies on the Interstate-278 corridor when leaving the Port of New York and New Jersey, Hems noted. It has also been made clear throughout the pandemic era that the trucking industry is vital for the wellbeing of our economy and for the wellbeing of the nation as a whole. Giving fewer trucks access to that section of the expressway at any given time will hinder a trucker’s ability to reach his or her destination on time, resulting in late deliveries or hours-of-service regulation violations, she added.

“I think what’s frustrating here is this continued rhetoric about eliminating trucks from New York City and shifting freight to other modes,” Hems explained. “They’re tying that into this whole plan, which I think is irresponsible, because trucks aren’t going away.”

Additionally, the plan has outlined intentions to analyze the structure’s joints and drainage capabilities as a method of stopping water infiltration within the structure in order to better preserve it.

A variety of rail- and water-related solutions has been proposed by Representative Nydia Velazquez of New York for the trucking industry to be able to alleviate some of the current infrastructural and environmental impacts in place. Other city officials have noted their goals to work with members of the trucking industry, as well as with other businesspeople and community members, throughout the coming months in an effort to develop the most efficient long-term plan for the corridor and its foreseeable future.

$1 Trillion Infrastructure Improvement Bill Approved by Senate

August 21, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

In a 69-to-30 vote, senators have decided to approve the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act–legislation meant to help bring massive improvements to U.S. freight corridors, transit systems, and mobility networks.

The $1 trillion bill includes a variety of climate change and infrastructure improvement proposals from President Joe Biden’s “build back better” plan, and finally gained Senate approval this month. Around $550 billion in new funds will be allocated to bring long-needed boosts to a variety of transportation systems, tunnels, highways, and bridges through the new legislation, explained the American Society of Civil Engineers.

Additionally, around $100 billion of the package will be dedicated to specific road and bridge projects, $66 billion will be dedicated to freight and passenger rail programs, $65 billion will be dedicated to broadband internet improvements, $46 billion will be dedicated to climate change and severe weather resilience programs, $39 billion will be dedicated to specific transit improvement plans, and $25 billion will be dedicated to airport improvement efforts.

“Americans, and the hardworking men and women who carry this economy on trucks, have waited long enough for Washington to act on our decaying infrastructure,” said Chris Spear, American Trucking Associations President, one of many key industry stakeholders who have expressed their support in regards to this new bill.

“Today’s bipartisan vote on the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act is a testament to what we can achieve when we set politics aside and work together for the good of the country,” added Senator Rob Portman of Ohio in a recent tweet. “This historic bill is the result of months of negotiations between [Republicans and Democrats]. Bipartisanship works!”

Portman was one of the political leaders who helped to create the new legislation.

“It will be a lasting bipartisan achievement to help the people we represent,” he said. “It’s going to improve the lives of all Americans. It’s long-term spending to repair and replace and build assets that will last for decades. In doing so, it does make life better for people.”

Portman also made clear that he, along with other policymakers, considered the people throughout the country for whom this kind of funding would make life much easier.

“It improves the life of the mom or dad who commutes to work and gets stuck in rush hour every day, who would much rather be spending that time with their family,” he said. “It improves the lives of people who are tired of those potholes. We all want to fix those potholes. We all hate them.”

Additionally, the bill will set forth an apprenticeship program for truck drivers under the age of 21 entering the workforce to be able to cross state lines in their commercial motor vehicles as a way to ease the current truck driver shortage. It would also approve a truck-leasing task force initiative and require the secretary of transportation to find the best methods of implementing side-underride guards for commercial vehicles.

Through the legislation, mandates would be set in place requiring that automatic emergency braking systems be implemented in some commercial vehicles, and The U.S. Department of Transportation would also be required to thoroughly analyze electronic logging device efficiency.

Finally, the legislation would allow for the reauthorization of the premier federal highway law, which was set to expire at the end of next month.

“Strong, reliable infrastructure represents more than pipes and pavement,” noted Senator Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona. “It represents the opportunities for Americans to visit loved ones, new businesses to open and compete globally, veterans to access tele-medicine, and children to learn in safe and effective ways.”

The bill will now move on to the House, where its projected outcome is not yet clear. The infrastructure package is expected to be explained in tandem with an overarching budget plan by Speaker Nancy Pelosi when she sets forth these plans’ legislative process.

House Transportation Chairman Peter DeFazio also plans to work on provision negotiations with the Senate, citing the passage of his recent multi-year highway policy update.

“I set out for several major objectives to rebuild America’s crumbling infrastructure, bring us into the 21st century, not do another iteration of the Eisenhower[-era] national highway program, but to actually begin to deal with current problems,” DeFazio explained.