2. Scope of Work and Deliverables The goal of this project is to produce a standard road condition legend that all states can display as an option on their 511 webpage for vehicle operators to easily access and understand. Currently, interstate drivers see a wide variety of road condition legends that consist of varying categories and colors that have inconsistent meanings. The national standard legend will provide a consistent display of pertinent road condition information that vehicle operators know will have the same meaning in all states they travel. Investigators will create one standard color legend that indicates road conditions. This will involve obtaining input from state DOTs-specifically 511 administrative and IT staff- and industry stakeholders, such as the American Trucking Association and its state chapters and other common interstate travelers that have specific interest in this topic. Extensive facilitated discussions, including interviews and workshops will determine what road condition indicators are currently in use, where DOTs receive their road condition data from and what categories a nationwide standard legend should contain. Using this information, a national road condition standard legend will be developed and accompanied by a definition and picture for each road condition category. Upon a consensus acceptance of the road condition legend, the project will provide guidance for DOTs to convert / crosswalk their current road condition categorization to the new standard categorization. Researchers will then recommend a strategy to achieve nationwide adoption of the road condition standard legend for display on 511 webpages.
