Crash Analyses of Proposed Variable Speed Limit Corridors in Wyoming (Laramie-Cheyenne, Evanston-Three Sisters, Green River-Rock Springs and US287 Corridors)
Tyson, Evgeniya
Tyson, Evgeniya
Abstract
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In February of 2009, the Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT) implemented its first Variable Speed Limit (VSL) system on the Elk Mountain Corridor of I-80. As part of the Phase II project four additional VSL corridors were proposed to be installed. The proposed corridors were Cheyenne–Laramie, Rock Springs–Green River, Evanston–Three Sisters on Interstate 80 and a fifteen mile corridor on U.S. 287 between Laramie and the Colorado state line. This paper analyzes the crash data collected by WY DOT for two time periods – the nine year and five-year time frames. The crashes will be sorted out into three categories: injury, fatal, or property damage crashes. Further, crash numbers will be compared with the Average Daily Traffic data in order to determine the crash rates per million vehicle miles traveled (MVMT). The crash rates will be plotted to see whether the crash rate has increased, decreased or remained the same in the years of the study. The main conclusion is that there are serious safety concerns on all four corridors. The crash rates in general have not seen significant improvement over the course of nine or even five year periods. The crash rate has been slightly decreasing along only Cheyenne–Laramie corridor, and either increasing (Green River–Rock Springs corridor), or remaining relatively the same (Evanston–Three Sisters corridor) during 2001-2010 period.
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University of Wyoming Libraries