Investigation of Innovations in Mounted Attenuators for Safety in Work Zones is a research results webinar that investigates the use of attenuators that could be mounted to a truck or automated to travel a specific distance behind a lead vehicle that serves as a barrier to crews working on highways.

During the first ten months of 2022, crews from Ohio DOT (ODOT) had been struck by vehicles 105 times while in work zones. Roadway work zone accidents usually end in tragedy. Currently, mobile attenuators are attached to state-owned dump trucks and operated by highway workers to lessen the impact when accidents occur. These vehicles and those driving them are put into harm's way to act as a first line of defense. 

The use of mounted attenuators is in lieu of an ODOT dump truck being driven by ODOT employees functioning as a sacrificial vehicle to protect workers from collisions due to vehicles not observing work zone restrictions.

An earlier study identified potentially cost-effective alternatives that could increase worker safety while limiting damage to ODOT trucks, but that study fell short of providing tested alternatives. Since then, advances in automated technology may enhance the potential for identifying a viable, reliable, and effective solution.

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