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Lesson 3 | Basic RSA Principles

• Define RSAs and explain how they contribute to road safety.

• Describe the composition and purpose of an RSA team.

• Identify the advantages of RSAs.

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• Describe the difference between in-service RSAs and design-stage RSAs.

• Identify resources available to facilitate RSAs.

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Fill in the blanks:

A formal _________________examination of an ________________ road or intersection by an ____________________RSA team.

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What elements of the road may present a safety issue: to what extent, to which road users, and under what circumstances?

What engineering, enforcement, and/or education solutions exist to eliminate or mitigate the identified safety issues, both in the short and long term?

“RSAs are a proven way to review just how safe our local roads are and can be a valuable tool for local government road professionals in making their roads safer.”

Tony Giancola Former Executive Director, NACE

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Typically:• Reactive in nature• Not performed by a multi-disciplinary or

independent safety review team • Concentrate on motorized traffic only• Do not consider human factors• Do not include a formal report• Do not require a formal response

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• Proactive approach• Performed at any stage in a road’s lifecycle• Independent, multidisciplinary team• Look at ALL road users• Consider 3 E’s (Engineering, Enforcement and

Education) solutions• Comprehensive step-by-step process – includes a

formal report and project owner response• Identify issues AND solutions

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RSAs performed before crashes (or more crashes) occur.

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Design stage

In-service

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“I believe that [RSAs] are an excellent tool for evaluating and improving the safety of our highway system. In the projects we've done, we've seen the most benefit in doing an RSA during conceptual and preliminary design, when any improvements can be incorporated into our project estimates and final design.“

Beth WrightDistrict EngineerMissouri DOT

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Make structural changes on paper instead of in concrete.

Optimize crash and conflict prevention.

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“We have implemented RSAs on proposed resurfacing projects. We now see our staff consistently looking for and implementing numerous low cost safety improvements on Iowa’s roads.”

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Thomas Welch, P.E.Safety Consultant /Retired State Safety Engineer, Iowa DOT

Independence = A fresh, unbiased assessment

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Multi-disciplinary:

• Design• Operations • Safety• Human Factors• Enforcement• Maintenance• Specialists

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RSA team prepares a formal, written report.

Project owner prepares a formal, written response.

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Ways to get RSA help:

• safety.fhwa.dot.gov/rsa• On-line• Peer-to-peer• Publications• Local Technical Assistance Program (LTAP) • Tribal Technical AssistanceProgram (TTAP)

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• Define RSAs and explain how they contribute to road safety.

• Describe the composition and purpose of an RSA team.

• Identify the advantages of RSAs.

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• Describe the difference between in-service RSAs and design-stage RSAs.

• Identify resources available to facilitate RSAs.

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Questions?