Information on Rumble Strips
Rumble Strips
There are several types and styles of rumble strips. The type our company installs is milled asphalt rumble strips. The way rumble strips work is based on a series of raised "bumps" and/or indents (milled grooves) along the shoulder and centerline of a road. When an inattentive driver crosses on or over the lines, it creates vibration and makes a distinctive "rumbling" noise, which alterts the driver.
There has been scores of studies on rumble strips, the benefits-costs "B/C" of installing rumble strips, accident prevention studies, and many other studies. Most of the studies conclude that rumble strips do reduce crashes, which ultimately reduce fatalities.
Rumble Strips and Crash Prevention
Based on the Federal Highway Adminstration research center, over half of all vehicle departures result in fatalities. Roughly forty percent of all crashes are roadway departures, and on average, one fatality, every 26 minutes, is due to roadway departures and one roadway departure crash happens every 43 seconds. So, what's the benefit in rumble strips? Well, several studies have shown that rumble strips reduce "road run-off" accidents.
The benefit to cost or "B/C" ranges from 30:1 to 60:1 depending on the study itself and they time of the study. Rumble strips are more cost effective than most other saftey features, including slope flattening, culvert-end treatments and guardrails.
Rumble Strip on Roads
Alerting a driver has its benefits, not only for the driver and his/her vehicle, but also road workers, pedestrians, bicyclist or hitting a disabled vehicle parked on the side of the road. However, rumble strips can also assist an "attentive" driver in determining proper lane position in bad weather. Heavy snow or rain can limit visibility, especially lane marker lines, but in this inclement weather, a driver could use a rumble strip to guide them along the road.
How can you get rumble strips installed on your local roads and highways? Contact your Department of Transportation, request it and tell them Rumble Strip Roads sent you! No matter how safe a driver you are, an inattentive driver could involve you in an accident. Getting your roads rumble stripped could prevent that from happening...
