MnDOT and Local Road Research Board

This research summary accompanies report 2023-38, "Identifying deer vehicle collision concentrations in Minnesota, published in November 2023.

This Research Summary accompanies Report 2024-15, Understanding the Performance of Road Base Stabilization Additives, published in May 2024.

This FAQ accompanied the Pavement Marking Retroreflectivity Inspection Methods Webinar.

This handout accompanied the Pavement Marking Retroreflectivity Inspection Methods Webinar.

To reduce highway fatalities after dark, the U.S. Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) issued new requirements for pavement marking “retroreflectivity” (the measure to which pavement markings reflect headlamp light back to its source). This standard has been incorporated into the Minnesota Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MN MUTCD) and applies to all agencies that manage Minnesota roadways. The Local Road Research Board (LRRB) is providing an easy-to-understand review of what agencies need to know to comply with new standards. This includes: • Understanding the basics of retroreflectivity • Review and summary of current requirements, deadlines, and procedures • Exploration of a range of tools, methods, and techniques to achieve retroreflectivity goals

People who walk and bike are the most vulnerable road users. However, understanding where they walk and bike requires continual data monitoring. Traditional methods rely on physical sensors in the infrastructure to detect the presence of pedestrians and bicyclists. However, these are expensive to deploy and only detect road users at the specific locations they are deployed. Instead, this study develops methods to use mobile phone based GPS data to estimate the number of bicyclists and pedestrians, and applies this methodology to the Twin Cities Metro area in Minnesota. The developed methodology is able to estimate average pedestrian and bicyclist volumes with relatively high accuracy.

The Fourth Northstar Workshop, "Transportation For Minnesota: How and How Much? What is The Transportation Future To Keep Minnesota Moving?" was held at the Thunderbird Motel in Bloomington, Minnesota, on December 1 and 2, 1987. It was attended by approximately 150 people drawn from Mn/DOT, other state departments, the Minnesota Legislature, county and municipal agencies, chambers of commerce, developers, and industry. The format of the workshop was one and one-half days of presentations of papers by individuals on subjects which had been assigned to them, with limited questions and discussion after each one. These presentations were followed by group discussions for which the attendees were divided into six groups. Reports of these discussions were made to the full conference by group leaders and a wrap-up was then made by Deputy Commissioner Doug Differt. Following the workshop. Transportation Commissioner Leonard W. Levine created a special action committee to follow up on these recommendations. The proceedings contains transcripts of the presentations made by the conference speakers and discussion group speakers, and also the wrap-up.

This is an summary of Report 86-06, "The Proceedings of the Third Northstar Workshop." The contents are: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ................................................... .1 FOLLOW-UP REPORT, Preliminary Work Plan ................................. ..8 APPENDIX A, Detailed Workshop Group Reports ............................... .11 Reports from Groups 1 through 6 APPENDIX B, Organizational Development of Workshop ......................... .21 Workshop Procedures Goals/Products Selection of Workshop Participants Agenda Group Questions Small Group Participation Tbchniques

The Northstar Workshop, "Financing Transportation Infrastructure: Innovative Approaches for Public/ Private Cooperation," was held at the Thunderbird Motel in Bloomington, Minnesota, on May 6 and 7,1986. It was attended by about 1 35 persons drawn from Mn/DOT, other state departments, the Minnesota Legislature, county and municipal agencies, chambers of commerce, developers, and industry. The format of the workshop was one and one-half days of presentations of papers by individuals on subjects which had been assigned to them, with limited questions and discussion after each one. The proceedings contains transcripts of these presentations. These presentations were followed by group discussions for which the attendees were divided into six groups. Reports of these discussions were made to the full conference by group leaders and a wrap-up was made by Deputy Commissioner Robert McDonald. Following the workshop, Mr. McDonald appointed a committee of Mn/DOT staff to review the innovative approaches for public/ private cooperation for financing transportation infrastructure in Minnesota. The committee was charged to make specific recommendations for incorporating public/private funding techniques into the state project development process based on the papers and discussions at the workshop. The report is included in the Executive Summary.

Stormwater treatment practices, often referred to as stormwater best management practices (BMPs), require a substantial commitment to maintenance, including regular inspections and assessments. Existing regulations require governmental units to develop a systematic approach for ongoing inspection and maintenance to ensure that they are achieving their desired treatment goals. A lack of maintenance will lead to a decrease in BMP performance and will often result in expensive rehabilitation or rebuild. In 2009, SRF Consulting produced a maintenance guide for the Local Road Research Board (LRRB) (Marti, et al. 2009). In 2023, the LRRB commissioned the University of Minnesota St. Anthony Falls Laboratory to update this guide to reflect new best practices. The Stormwater BMP Inspection and Maintenance Resource Guide (the Guide) is a supplement to the Minnesota Stormwater Manual (MPCA 2023) and will help the reader plan for recommended long-term maintenance activities through guidance on visual inspection, testing, and monitoring methods for identifying what maintenance is needed, and when it is needed. The Guide describes inspection and maintenance for constructed stormwater ponds (both dry and wet) and wetlands, underground sedimentation practices, infiltration practices, filtration practices, bioretention practices, permeable pavements, and stormwater harvesting. In addition, the Guide includes a section on Meeting Stormwater Management Objectives, which provides information on achieving reductions for sediment, phosphorus, nitrogen, metals, chloride, pathogens, and organic chemicals. The Guide also includes Field Inspections Resources, which contains inspection checklists and maintenance activity recommendations for all of the practices listed