Road Safety Audits (RSA)

APPENDIX A
RSA CASE STUDIES

RSA NUMBER 7

CITY OF CINCINNATI (OHIO):
RSA OF IMPROVEMENTS TO THE SPRING GROVE AVENUE CORRIDOR

Project: improvements to commuter arterial, including bridge widening and intersection improvements
Planned Improvements:	intersection improvements road and bridge widening traffic signal improvements
Project Environment:	x urban	suburban	rural
Project Design Stage:	x conceptual (0 to 30%)	preliminary (40 to 80%)	advanced (over 80%)
Project Cost:	< $100,000	$100,000 - $1,000,000	x >$1,000,000
Project Owner:	City of Cincinnati
Road Safety Audit
Date of RSA:	14-16 December 2004
RSA Stage(s):	x design stage	x RSA of existing roads
RSA team:	staff from Federal Highway Administration, City of Cincinnati, VHB, and Opus Hamilton

PROJECT BACKGROUND:

The City of Cincinnati was considering improvements along the Spring Grove Avenue corridor between Winton Road and Clifton Avenue (FIGURES A.10 and A.11). Spring Grove Avenue and Winton Road are major commuter arterials connecting areas to the north, east, and west to I-75. Clifton Avenue is a two-lane major/minor arterial street connecting Spring Grove Road to the Clifton area to the south, and providing access to commercial developments constructed in the past five years on Kenard Avenue, a collector road.

The corridor had recently experienced a high number of crashes, putting the intersection of Spring Grove Avenue and Winton Road at the top of the City’s High Accident Location list, and resulting in an above-average collision rate at the intersection of Spring Grove Avenue and Clifton Avenue. In addition, traffic near the intersection of Clifton Avenue and Kenard Avenue had increased to a point where widening Clifton Avenue at the intersection (which would involve bridge widening south of the intersection) was being considered.

This planning-stage RSA reviewed several upgrades, including:

Clifton Avenue bridge widening to accommodate four 10-foot lanes and a 10-foot painted median strip,
traffic signal improvements at the intersection of Spring Grove Avenue and West Mitchell Avenue,
other possible improvements to Spring Grove Avenue in connection with the planned upgrade.

The aerial photo shows the RSA road network.

FIGURE A.10 RSA SITE (CITY OF CINCINNATI)


Spring Grove Avenue	intersection of Winton Road and Spring Grove Avenue

FIGURE A.11 VIEWS OF RSA SITE (CINCINNATI RSA)

KEY RSA FINDINGS AND SUGGESTIONS:

The key findings and suggestions of the RSA are summarized in TABLE A.8.

TABLE A.8 SUMMARY OF SELECTED SAFETY ISSUES AND SUGGESTIONS
CINCINNATI RSA
SELECTED SAFETY ISSUE (Number and Description)		RISK RATING	SUGGESTIONS
1	traffic signal infrastructure: Signal displays should be visible and conspicuous at all times.	D	Align traffic signal heads with approach lanes. Use redundant signal displays. Upgrade all signal lenses to 12”. Provide advance warning signs for signals that follow horizontal curves. Use backplates with reflective border.
2	turn-movement operations and geometry: Conflicting turning movements and complex geometry increase the risk of collisions at intersections.	D	Review the need for dual turns. Review concurrent dual turns. Review the practice of providing protected turn phasing in shared-use lanes. Investigate opportunities for increasing turn radii.
3	driveways and access management: Movements at driveways interfere with traffic on arterial roads and intersections, creating potentially hazardous conflicts.	C	Investigate opportunities to close and consolidate some driveways. Consider eliminating left turns into and out of driveways. Include driveway on the west leg of Clifton Avenue / Kenard Avenue in the intersection signalization.
4	road cross section: The cross section of Spring Grove Avenue includes apparent inconsistencies.	B	Design the new cross-section with uniform lane widths.
5	pedestrian facilities: Pedestrian facilities need upgrading and maintenance.	C	Provide consistent levels of lighting and upgrade lighting at crosswalks. Review warrant for upgrading crosswalk makings near Station Avenue. Improve sidewalk conditions.

KEY LESSONS LEARNED:

The RSA field review should be scheduled to coincide with important site conditions. This RSA was conducted in late December, after classes at a nearby university had ended. The RSA team was consequently unable to observe the impact of university traffic at the site. Although this did not significantly affect the RSA findings, scheduling the field review to observe typical or usual traffic conditions is preferable, since it allows the RSA team to see how regularly-recurring traffic conditions and road user behavior may affect safety.

See also the discussion of “Key Factors for Success” and “Lessons Learned” in the main text.

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Program Contact

Becky Crowe
Program Manager
rebecca.crowe@dot.gov
804-775-3381

Training
Heather Rigdon
RSA Program Support
Heather.Rigdon.ctr@dot.gov
703-676-6828

Technical Assistance
K. Craig Allred
Transportation Specialist
craig.allred@dot.gov
720-963-3236

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