Study of Operational and Safety Impacts of Disabled and Abandoned Vehicles on FDOT Roadways

Abstract

Disabled and abandoned vehicles (DAVs) are a common occurrence on Florida roadways. This research focused on evaluating the operational and safety impacts of DAVs and identifying and evaluating methods to reduce these impacts. A comprehensive literature review showed that previous studies focused on DAV response (including the use of innovative towing programs), but not DAV impacts. The responses to a developed national survey on DAVs indicated that abandoned vehicles are more common in other states than in Florida and that improving towing procedures and equipment could reduce the impacts of these events. Over 1,250 DAV crashes, 1.5 million non-crash SunGuide events, and 10.2 million Waze alerts were analyzed. The DAV crashes resulted in 53 fatalities, 976 injuries, and $966 million in comprehensive fatality and injury costs. Compared to DAV crashes, the non-crash events were less likely to be lane-blocking and more common during daytime hours. About 47% of SunGuide events had an associated Waze alert preceding the SunGuide event, indicating that utilization of DAV Waze alerts in SunGuide could improve DAV detection. Benefit-cost evaluations of utilizing these Waze alerts on SR-91 in D4 and I-4 in D5 resulted in benefit-cost ratios of 18.4 and 59.7, respectively, when considering only congestion savings. An instant dispatch tow program could also provide significant benefits, especially in urban areas, while expanding the hours of Road Ranger patrols would not be as cost effective. Therefore, it is recommended to explore the potential of utilizing DAV Waze alerts and implementing instant dispatch tow in Florida.