01372460

Component

This study examines the Enhanced Penalty Zones (EPZs) established on Interstate 95 in three counties in Florida to assess the effects of increased penalties on improving the safety (reducing crashes and injuries) of freeway segments. Further, data about enforcement activities were collected by troopers working along EPZ and non-EPZ segments of the I-95 corridor to study the differential effects of enforcement on speeding between the EPZ and non-EPZ segments. A systematic analysis of crash and injury data before and after the establishment of EPZs indicate that the crashes and injuries were reduced in the EPZ segments, although the magnitude of the reduction varied by analysis methodology. On examining the impact on speeds, the authors find that 15-minute average speeds in EPZs are lesser than the speeds in non-EPZ segments after controlling for traffic volumes. However, no reductions in speeds were estimated during periods of police enforcement either in the EPZ or in the comparison segments. Overall, this analysis suggests that the EPZs did improve freeway safety by resulting in lower speeds and fewer crashes and injuries.

This paper was sponsored by TRB committee ANB40 Traffic Law Enforcement

01362476

12-4384

English

19p

2012

Transportation Research Board 91st Annual Meeting

Digital/other

References; Tables

Countermeasures; Crash injuries; Freeways; Highway safety; Penalties; Police patrol; Speeding; Traffic crashes; Traffic law enforcement

Highways; Safety and Human Factors; I83: Accidents and the Human Factor

Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting 2012 Paper #12-4384

TRIS, TRB

Feb 8 2012 5:23PM