Why install rumble strips in Alaska?
Fatal and major injury crashes continue to occur each year due to vehicles running off the road or running head-on into opposing traffic. No significant decline in these crashes occurred during the 1990’s, despite the use of rolled-in rumble shoulder rumble strips. As traffic volumes have continued to increase, an increasing number of head-on and run-off-the road crashes caused Alaska to convert to milled-in rumble strips. In the year 2000, a southcentral Alaska project installed shoulder rumble strips on 375 miles of our main highways. The northern region around Fairbanks installed 500 road miles in 2002. This has been proven to reduce crashes by over 22 percent since installation, and 29 percent in southcentral Alaska. Had Alaska not built rumble strips, data indicates that approximately 25 more fatal and 85 more major injury crashes would have occurred over the five years following installation. In 2009 and 2010, the Department is scheduled to install over 150 road miles of shoulder
