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Professional Line Striping for Contractors

Article 19 of 24

Work-Zone Traffic Control for Striping Operations

Control Traffic Before Starting Production

Line-striping crews often work close to moving vehicles while concentrating on layout, machine alignment, material flow, and marking quality. That combination makes traffic control a primary part of the operation—not an accessory added after work begins.

Before equipment enters the work area, the contractor must determine how vehicles, pedestrians, cyclists, customers, employees, deliveries, emergency responders, and the striping crew will move safely through or around the operation.

Identify Who Controls the Site

Traffic-control requirements depend on the location, type of roadway, ownership, contract, and authority having jurisdiction. Work on a public roadway may require an approved temporary traffic-control plan, permits, trained personnel, prescribed devices, and agency notification.

Private parking facilities may not be governed by every roadway provision, but the contractor still has a responsibility to establish an effective system that protects workers and the public. Some private roads and site roadways may also qualify as roads open to public travel.

• Identify the property owner, facility representative, general contractor, and controlling employer.
• Determine which agency or authority approves the traffic-control plan.
• Confirm permit, notification, inspection, and working-hour requirements.
• Establish responsibility for installing, inspecting, maintaining, and removing devices.
• Document changes authorized in the field.

Temporary Traffic Control Has Four Functional Areas

A roadway temporary traffic-control zone is generally organized into functional areas. Not every operation uses every element in the same way, but the contractor should understand the purpose of each.

Required sign spacing, taper length, channelizing-device spacing, buffer dimensions, and device selection depend on factors such as roadway speed, width, alignment, sight distance, traffic volume, duration, and the governing plan. Use the approved values rather than estimating them in the field.

A Buffer Space Is Not a Storage Area

A buffer space provides recovery distance between approaching traffic and the work space. Workers, machines, paint containers, stencil racks, parked vehicles, and other equipment should not occupy a designated longitudinal or lateral buffer unless the approved plan specifically permits it.

Placing equipment in the buffer removes the space intended to absorb an intrusion or driver error. The crew leader should verify that the buffer remains clear throughout the operation.

Classify the Operation Correctly

Traffic control for a moving striping operation is not necessarily the same as traffic control for a crew marking a fixed intersection, parking bay, symbol, or curb. The temporary traffic-control plan should reflect the actual duration and movement of the work.

Develop the Traffic-Control Plan Before Mobilization

The temporary traffic-control plan should match the site, work sequence, equipment, traffic conditions, and crew capabilities. A copied diagram is useful only when it is applicable to the actual operation and approved where approval is required.

• Work-zone limits and sequence of operations
• Posted speed and observed operating speed
• Traffic volume, vehicle type, and peak-use periods
• Sight-distance restrictions, curves, hills, entrances, and intersections
• Required signs, channelizing devices, arrow boards, warning lights, and support vehicles
• Pedestrian, bicycle, accessible-route, and transit considerations
• Emergency access and coordination with responders
• Delivery routes, business entrances, and facility operations
• Device installation and removal sequence
• Contingency procedures for traffic incidents, weather, equipment failure, or delayed drying

Installing and Removing Devices

Workers are exposed while placing and retrieving traffic-control devices. The installation sequence should reduce the time workers spend facing uncontrolled traffic.

Where applicable, warning signs are normally installed in the order drivers encounter them, beginning with the sign farthest upstream and progressing toward the work area. Removal is generally performed in the reverse order. The approved plan and agency procedure control the actual sequence.

• Use an appropriate vehicle and crew arrangement for device deployment.
• Avoid walking with the back toward approaching traffic whenever practical.
• Do not step into an active lane until the required protection is established.
• Secure devices against displacement without creating unnecessary hazards.
• Remove or cover signs promptly when their messages no longer apply.

Signs and Channelizing Devices

Temporary signs and channelizing devices must be appropriate for the roadway, visible to approaching traffic, positioned as shown in the approved plan, and maintained in an acceptable condition.

• Use the correct sign legend, size, color, and support.
• Maintain required mounting height, lateral placement, and spacing.
• Keep devices clean, upright, properly oriented, and visible.
• Replace damaged, faded, contaminated, or ineffective devices.
• Do not use traffic-control devices as equipment stands or material-storage locations.
• Ensure devices are crashworthy when required for the application.

Cones Alone Do Not Make a Safe Work Zone

A row of cones may define an area, but it does not automatically provide adequate advance warning, transition, buffer space, pedestrian accommodation, or protection from an errant vehicle.

Traffic control must function as a complete system. Each sign, taper, device, vehicle, buffer, and worker position should support the same traffic path and provide drivers enough time to recognize and respond to the condition ahead.

Work Vehicles, Shadow Vehicles, and Impact Protection

Striping operations may use work vehicles, warning vehicles, shadow vehicles, arrow boards, truck-mounted attenuators, or other protective equipment. Their need and placement depend on the approved traffic-control plan, roadway conditions, work classification, and agency requirements.

A shadow vehicle is intended to provide advance warning or physical protection for workers and equipment. It must be positioned with enough separation to protect the work space without being so distant that an intruding vehicle can enter the operation.

• Use approved lighting, signs, arrow boards, or attenuators where required.
• Confirm vehicle orientation and operating mode before movement begins.
• Maintain the required roll-ahead distance in front of a protective vehicle.
• Do not place workers or equipment in the expected path of a displaced shadow vehicle.
• Inspect vehicle-mounted traffic-control equipment before the shift.

Flaggers and Traffic-Control Personnel

When flaggers are required, use personnel who have the training, qualifications, equipment, and authority required by the governing agency and employer. Their position must provide adequate sight distance and an escape path.

• Use approved STOP/SLOW paddles and required high-visibility apparel.
• Position flaggers where approaching drivers can see and respond to them.
• Do not assign flaggers duties that distract them from traffic.
• Establish reliable communication between flaggers when they cannot see each other.
• Identify a safe retreat path before traffic control begins.
• Provide relief so attention can be maintained throughout the operation.

Parking Lots and Active Facilities

Parking-lot traffic is slower than highway traffic but often less predictable. Drivers may be searching for spaces, reading signs, using phones, backing from stalls, following old markings, or entering an area they do not recognize as closed.

• Coordinate closures with facility management before arrival.
• Remove vehicles from the planned work area before layout begins.
• Close complete, understandable sections rather than creating confusing partial restrictions.
• Maintain safe access to occupied buildings and operating businesses.
• Provide designated routes for pedestrians, deliveries, and emergency vehicles.
• Control entrances so drivers do not encounter a closure after they are committed to a movement.
• Protect wet markings until they can accept traffic without tracking or damage.

Pedestrians and Accessible Routes

A traffic-control arrangement must not protect vehicles while forcing pedestrians into the travel lane or an inaccessible route. When a walkway is affected, provide the routing, channelization, signs, detectable features, width, surface, and accessibility required by the approved plan and governing standards.

• Maintain access to building entrances and accessible parking routes.
• Avoid trip hazards from hoses, cords, signs, tools, and channelizing devices.
• Do not direct pedestrians into moving equipment or fresh markings.
• Provide clear information before pedestrians reach the closure.
• Inspect temporary routes throughout the operation.

Intersections, Entrances, and Conflict Points

Intersections and entrances expose the crew to traffic approaching from several directions. Drivers may turn across the work area even when the primary traffic stream is controlled.

• Identify every direction from which a vehicle, cyclist, or pedestrian can enter.
• Account for turning movements and vehicles exiting adjacent properties.
• Do not rely on one worker to monitor several hidden approaches.
• Coordinate with signal operation and law enforcement when required.
• Use a work sequence that limits the time personnel occupy the conflict area.

Backing Requires a Specific Plan

Backing incidents are a serious risk around striping equipment, support trucks, trailers, and active facilities. Eliminate unnecessary backing through site layout and work sequencing whenever practical.

When backing is required, inspect the path first, control pedestrian and vehicle access, use mirrors and cameras as aids, sound the required warning, and use a trained spotter when site conditions or company procedures require one. The driver and spotter must agree on signals and stop movement immediately if visual contact is lost.

Night and Low-Visibility Operations

Night work may reduce traffic but introduces visibility, glare, fatigue, depth-perception, and lighting concerns. The work area must provide enough illumination for traffic control, equipment operation, material placement, inspection, and pedestrian movement.

• Inspect retroreflective signs and devices before deployment.
• Position lighting to illuminate the work without blinding road users.
• Control shadows that can conceal workers, equipment, or pavement defects.
• Use the required high-visibility apparel for nighttime conditions.
• Monitor fatigue and rotate demanding assignments when appropriate.
• Account for dew, falling pavement temperature, and longer material-drying times.

Pre-Shift Crew Briefing

Before work begins, review the traffic-control arrangement with everyone who will enter the work zone. Each person should understand the traffic path, work sequence, communication method, equipment movements, assigned position, and emergency procedure.

• Who is the competent or designated person responsible for traffic-control inspections?
• Where are the work space, traffic space, buffer, and escape paths?
• Which vehicles and machines will move, turn, or back?
• What hand signals, radios, or other communication methods will be used?
• Who can stop the operation if traffic control becomes ineffective?
• What is the response to an intrusion, collision, medical emergency, spill, or sudden weather change?

Inspect the Work Zone Continuously

Traffic control can change after installation. Wind can rotate signs, vehicles can strike cones, queues can extend beyond the advance-warning area, and changing light can reduce visibility.

Inspect the arrangement before work begins, after major changes, at the frequency required by the plan, and whenever traffic behavior indicates a problem. Correct ineffective devices or layouts promptly.

• Signs remain visible, upright, and applicable.
• Tapers and channelizing devices maintain the intended path.
• Buffers remain clear.
• Queues and delays remain within the planned limits.
• Pedestrian and accessible routes remain usable.
• Workers and equipment remain inside the protected work space.
• Devices are adjusted as the striping operation advances.

Work-Zone Readiness Checklist

• Required permits and traffic-control approvals are available.
• The plan matches the actual site, work sequence, and traffic conditions.
• Signs and devices are correct, serviceable, and positioned as required.
• Workers have the required training and high-visibility apparel.
• Work vehicles and protective equipment have been inspected.
• Pedestrian, accessible, delivery, and emergency routes are maintained.
• Buffer spaces and escape paths are clear.
• The crew understands communication and stop-work procedures.
• A qualified person will monitor the traffic-control system.
• The closure will remain in place until markings are ready for traffic.

Technical References

• Federal Highway Administration, Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, Part 6—Temporary Traffic Control, current adopted edition.
• Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Work Zone Traffic Safety Fact Sheet.
• Federal Highway Administration, Implementing Proven Safety Countermeasures in Work Zones.
• Applicable OSHA construction-safety requirements, state occupational-safety rules, state transportation standards, agency temporary traffic-control manuals, and approved project plans.
• Current manufacturer instructions for traffic-control devices, arrow boards, lighting, warning vehicles, attenuators, communications equipment, and high-visibility apparel.

Regulations, standards, and agency requirements are subject to revision. Confirm the requirements currently adopted for the project location before establishing the work zone.

Professional responsibility: The temporary traffic-control arrangement must be selected and implemented by qualified personnel in accordance with the approved plan, governing agency requirements, applicable safety regulations, and actual site conditions. Stop the operation when traffic control becomes ineffective or workers and the public cannot be protected.

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