Speaking

Roadway departure crashes have been an emphasis area within each of Kentucky’s Strategic Highway Safety Plan (SHSP), stretching back to the first SHSP published in 2006. The Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) promotes safer roads and specifically addresses these severe crashes through its Roadway Departure Corridors initiative.

In Muhlenberg County, 70% of roadway departure crashes along a four-mile stretch of US 431 occur in a one-mile segment. Roadway departure crashes along three miles of US 27 in Pendleton County are more dispersed, but with clusters near major intersections. In reviewing the crash data and site conditions, the project team identified that many of these crashes were anything but "typical" roadway departure crashes. These case studies from recent Roadway Departure Corridor projects will demonstrate to attendees how to diagnose underlying factors and identify conventional and unorthodox treatments to improve roadway departure safety across Kentucky.