An annotated glossary of the concepts, definitions, and standardterminology currently used and advocated in traffic control for highway construction, maintenance, and related activities is presented.For selected terms and categories, information is provided on the background, use, implications, and relevant principles. The objectiveis to achieve consistency in the use of these terms in preparing manuals, directives, and contract documents and in training, reportingresearch findings, and otherwise communicating on this subject. Much of the terminology recommended has been used, modified, and refined through decades of intensive work-zone training courses conducted for engineering, technical, and field personnel. This experience hasshown that the precise use of words is not merely an academic exercise. The terminology that evolved promotes understanding and resultsin higher test scores. Good, clear, and consistent language aids understanding and yields a better product in the field. This in turn enhances safety, which is the ultimate objective. This paper appears in transportation research record no. 1230, Work-zone traffic control and tests of delineation material.
Abstract