Where is the appropriate location for above ground utility structures?
FHWA policy is that utility facilities should be located as close to the right-of-way line as feasible. The Green Book, AASHTO Highway Safety Design and Operations Guide, 1997, (Yellow Book) and the AASHTO A Guide for Accommodating Utilities within Highway Right-of-way, all state that utilities should be located as close to the right-of-way line as feasible. The Yellow Book, recognizing that crashes are overrepresented on urban arterials and collectors, says this means as far as practical behind the face of outer curbs and where feasible, behind the sidewalks. It is not always feasible to relocate all poles within project limits. Critical locations should be considered for improvement, such as those dictated by crash experience or in potential crash locations, such as within horizontal curves. Where poles cannot be relocated from critical locations, mitigation such as breakaway or shielding should be considered. Poles should not be installed in a location that could act as a funnel dir
