Study: Toll Roads Safer than Non-toll Roads

An advocate for tolling has released studies that reportedly show toll roads to be safer than non-tolled roads and that the public supports tolling.

The first study compares the safety record of toll roads, tunnels and bridges to that of non-toll facilities in the U.S. It concludes that toll facilities have a lower fatality rate than do U.S. roads overall and lower fatality rates than both urban and rural interstate highways.

“The new research shows that toll roads actually have a lower fatality rate than non-tolled roads. This is true for even the safest type of roads in the U.S., the interstate highways,” says Patrick Jones, executive director and CEO of the Washington, D.C.-based International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association.

The Fatality Analysis Reporting System of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis reports that in 2005 the overall road fatality rate for the U.S. was 1.47 fatalities per 100 million vehicle mi traveled. The fatality rates for urban and rural interstate highways in 2004 (the last year for which data was readily available) were 0.55 and 1.21, respectively.

The fatality rate for toll facilities was slightly lower than the rate for urban interstate highways and significantly lower than the rate for rural interstates. Of the toll facilities, toll roads had the highest fatality rate, at 0.52 fatalities per 100 million vehicle mi traveled. The fatality rates for toll bridges and tunnels were significantly lower, at 0.27 and 0.14 fatalities, respectively.

Innovations in toll technology help to reduce fatality and accident rates. Traffic management information services, annual budgets, types of toll configurations, and types of managed lanes, contribute to fatality and accident rates. The survey shows that as the percentage of electronic toll collection users during peak operating times goes up, accident rates go down.

The second study summarizes the findings from 110 different surveys that look at public attitudes toward tolling. The study shows that 56% showed support for tolling while opposition was found in 31% of the surveys.

IDOT Engineer O’Keefe Wins Public Works Honor

The Chicago Metro Chapter of the Washington, D.C.-based American Public Works Association has given its Public Works Leader of the Year award to Diane O’Keefe, deputy director of highways and regional engineer in the Chicago area for the Illinois Department of Transportation.

The award recognizes outstanding career achievements for public works professionals in both the public and private sectors.

“For the past 26 years Diane O’Keefe has had a tremendous impact on the transportation policy and growth of the State of Illinois,” the APWA says.

Also, the group is giving its award for large scale Transportation Project of the Year to two IDOT projects completed in 2007, the Dan Ryan Expressway/Interstate-90/94 Reconstruction Project and the Kingery Expressway/I-80/94 Reconstruction Project.

The $975 million Dan Ryan Reconstruction Project involved reconstructing and widening one of the most heavily traveled urban expressways in the nation while minimizing the impact on the densely populated neighborhoods that line the roadway on the South Side of Chicago. The four-year project was intended to improve safety and relieve congestion on the expressway. It added an additional lane from 47th Street to 95th Street, included a redesigned interchange for the Chicago Skyway and redesigned entrance and exit ramps to make it easier and safer to get on and off the expressway.

The $450 million Kingery Reconstruction Project in southern Cook County was also intended to improve safety and reduce congestion on a heavily traveled expressway. It involved widening I-80/94 to eliminate a major bottleneck and reconstructing the interchanges for Torrence Ave. and I-80/94/IL Rt. 394.