Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.) introduced legislation to encourage states to explore a road usage charge to help fund transportation projects. The bill submitted on Tuesday by the state’s 3rd District representative would reauthorize the Surface Transportation Systems Funding Alternatives (STSFA) program through 2025 and increase funding authorization, improve reporting requirements and provide special consideration for new projects that advance the knowledge of funding alternatives or collect revenue, according to the congressman’s office.

Additional responses to questions submitted to The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) regarding the testing of roadside safety hardware under the Manual for Assessing Safety Hardware (MASH) 2016 were released Monday. 

At its meeting of October 9 in St. Louis, Missouri, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials’ (AASHTO) Board of Directors endorsed a motion put forth by the Council of Highways and Streets (Chief Engineers) to develop the Manual for Assessing Safety Hardware (MASH) into a “performance specification.” 

Every roadway countermeasure makes a difference. Roundabouts, highly reflective signs, pavement markings and all traffic control and infrastructure devices are critical to enhancing safety on U.S. roadways. Countermeasures can mitigate against human behavior-related crashes and ultimately save lives.  

ATSSA's flagger training courses have been teaching individuals how to be safe and effective flaggers for nearly 50 years. These courses help trainees understand why proper flagger operations are essential, identify standard flagger control references, and learn standard flagger practices for many situations—both expected and unexpected.
While the association has taken great strides to provide and adequately train individuals across the country, there still are infrequencies when it comes to having consistent standards on a national scale.