Right-of-Way Management Program
Purpose and Goal: This City of Phoenix Right-of-Way Management Program (RMP) was designed to enhance traffic safety and mobility by minimizing unauthorized and improper street and sidewalk restrictions. Our goal is to improve awareness and knowledge of effective temporary traffic control practices. By doing so we want to improve compliance levels thus providing road users (both vehicular and pedestrians) an efficient and safe environment, while still allowing construction/maintenance to be accomplished in a timely manner.
Why a new Program? Phoenix has always had an effective temporary traffic control program dating back to 1961 when the very first Traffic Barricade Manual was written. As traffic levels and the number of construction/maintenance activities have increased however, City staff and citizens have noticed an overall degradation in work practices within the public right-of-way (both streets and sidewalks). To address this, notices were sent out to those who work in public right-of-way asking for voluntary improved compliance.
No noticeable improvement has resulted as a part of our efforts to encourage improvement over the last two years. Accordingly, Phoenix has developed this Right-of-Way Management Program predicated on careful research into techniques other major cities have found effective, yet tailored to work best in Phoenix.
Summary: In developing Phoenix's new RMP, we worked closely with the American Traffic Service and Safety Associations (ATSSA). ATSSA is the key professional organization of the barricade and temporary traffic control industry. Their leadership recognized the degradation of temporary traffic control practices, and provided sage input to the newly developed RMP. A key input was that the industry would support what needed to be done to improve practices, provided the City could design the Program in a manner that provided a "level playing field" between competitors. We did so, as we designed the Program so as to eliminate the situation where competitive bidding would short-change the quality of the end product.
The new Program ends Phoenix's dependence upon strictly voluntary compliance with sound temporary traffic control practices. Starting September 1, 2004, failure to comply with specified practices will subject violators to civil sanctions (Notice of Violations) being issued to the offenders. Additionally, in emergency conditions where eminent hazards prevail or where there has been willful disregard to City requests to pick up signs/barricades in a timely manner, the City will have authority to impound devices. Our goal is to minimize the need for exercising these new penalty provisions by requiring each agency to have trained staff. Certain training will be required of agencies and other training will be strongly encouraged so that sufficient and knowledgeable supervision exists for any workers setting up or taking down temporary traffic control in Phoenix right-of-way.
For more specifics as to the components of the program or the required training (and schedules of training), see the following links:
