Work zone safety is a major concern for many community members, including government agencies, legislatures, and the traveling public ( Chambless et al., 2002 Ullman et al., 2008).

This research contributes to the body of knowledge by providing strategies for selecting and implementing intrusion sensing technologies for active work zone safety. The findings of the study indicate that the commercially available technologies have the potential to enhance safety of work zone workers by providing warning alerts when hazardous situations exist. Candidate commercially available technologies were selected and evaluated using field experiments in simulated work zones. An objective assessment of each technology was provided based on selected evaluation metrics to elicit their capabilities.

To achieve the objectives of this research, an exploratory review of the applicable technologies was conducted to identify the intrusion technologies that can be implemented for work zone safety. The main objective of this study was to conduct both conceptual analysis and experimental evaluation of intrusion sensing technologies for work zone safety. Active strategies, such as the deployment of intrusion sensing and alert technologies in highway work zones and in transportation infrastructure construction and maintenance, can be effective at mitigating these unforeseen conditions. A host of interactions between workers, passing commuter vehicles, and moving construction equipment occurs in highway work zones, fostering dangerous situations that can result in injury or death.

Highway construction work zones are hazardous environments characterized by a dynamic and limited workspace.

2School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, United States.

1Department of Construction Science, The University of Texas at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, United States.

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