The primary objective of this course is to introduce graduate students to topics in traffic safety engineering. Over 42,000 people are killed each year on United States roadways. The goal of transportation safety engineering research is to reduce this number substantially. State-of-the-art computer applications, statistical analysis, and current research findings will be presented throughout the course.

The following statement indicates which of the following considerations are included in this course: economic, environmental, ethical, political, societal, health and safety, manufacturability, sustainability.

The design of traffic control systems considers societal needs for safe and efficient movement of traffic. Students develop the ability to select and apply appropriate analytical tools to solve traffic safety problems.

Additionally, safety is a key factor that is considered in the design and operation of transportation systems. High crash rates are a measure of system failure. Safety programs are used to identify potential causes of crashes and to identify and evaluate possible solutions. Specific contributions include:

(1) Ability to apply knowledge of mathematics, science, and engineering

(2) Ability to define a problem, conduct experiments, analyze and interpret data, and apply statistical methods

(3) Ability of function on multi-disciplinary teams

(4) Ability to communicate ideas effectively

(5) Understanding of civil engineering decisions on society

(6) Understanding of professional and ethical responsibility

(7) Recognition of the need for, and an ability to engage in life-long learning

(8) Knowledge of codes, contract documents, standards and contemporary issues

(9) Understanding of the role of research in solving engineering problems