AASHTO Journal - MassDOT Introduces Municipal Speed Signage Program

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation has launched a $1 million Municipal Speed Feedback Signage Program, designed to help local communities manage vehicle speeds and enhance roadway safety – particularly in speed transition zones where posted limits change.

[Above photo by MassDOT]

The program, administered cooperatively by MassDOT’s Office of Transportation Planning and Highway Division, will provide municipalities with solar-powered and Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices or MUTCD-compliant speed feedback signs, either post-mounted or portable trailer-mounted, at no capital cost to local governments.

The agency stressed that participating municipalities will be responsible for installation and maintenance of the signs and will share the speed data collected from the signs to help support statewide speed management research and decision-making.

MassDOT added that this initiative is supported with federal Highway Safety Improvement Program or HSIP and aligns with the agency’s broader “Safe System” approach and “Vision Zero” strategy to eliminate traffic fatalities and serious injuries.

“The launch of this program strengthens our collaboration with cities and towns as we work together to increase driver awareness, reduce vehicle speeds, and make our roads safer for everyone,” said Jonathan Gulliver, MassDOT’s undersecretary and state highway administrator, in a statement.

“MassDOT’s top priority is and always will be safety so we are excited to partner with cities and towns to provide these signs to qualifying applications at no upfront cost to municipalities,” he added.

The agency noted that research indicates that driver feedback signs are among the most effective tools for influencing motorist behavior, reducing average speeds by 2 percent to 17 percent and lowering collision severity by 23 percent to 45 percent in urban environments.

Driver feedback signs are particularly effective in speed transition zones where roadway design or context changes, such as moving from rural to suburban or urban areas, MassDOT noted.