The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) announced last week an impending update to their Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices for Streets and Highways (MUTCD), which governs the nation’s traffic control.
Traffic signs, signals and pavement markings all fall under the category, and the last time their definitions were revised was in 2012.
The MUTCD update was announced as part of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s release of new federal guidelines for automated vehicles — “Preparing for the Future of Transportation: Automated Vehicles 3.0.”
“The new manual will be forward-looking in accommodating technologies necessary to support highway connectivity, automation, and innovations that improve safety and efficiency,” Deputy Federal Highway Administrator Brandye L. Hendrickson said. “The revised edition will lay the groundwork for supporting the infrastructure of the future.”
Specifically, this edition will focus on technical provisions and the incorporation of recent innovations. It will reduce administrative burdens on state and local agencies by introducing congestion-reduction strategies: variable speed limits, dynamic lane control, and shoulder use and the like. Input from the public will be a key part of the update, and proposed changes will be released for public review and comment in spring 2019.