Safety Edge - Design and Construction
Credit: 1 PDH
Subject Matter Expert: Mark Knarr, P.E., CDT, CEM, LEED AP BD+C, PMP, CCEA, GPCP
In Safety Edge - Design and Construction, you'll learn ...
- How Safety EdgeSM saves lives by allowing drivers who drift off highways to return to the road safely
- Locations where Safety EdgeSM can be used and applications where it is not suitable
- Safety EdgeSM installation considerations
- The two critical material issues in terms of placing a Safety EdgeSM for AC mixtures
Overview
On roadways, drop-offs occur when there are height differences between a paved road and the adjacent graded material. Conventional paving techniques result in vertical or nearly vertical pavement edges, which can cause safety concerns when they are exposed.
When a driver drifts (i.e. “departs”) the roadway and tries to steer back onto the pavement, a vertical pavement edge can create a tire-scrubbing condition that may result in over-steering. If drivers over-steer to return to the roadway without reducing speed, they are prone to lose control of the vehicle. The resulting crashes tend to be more severe than other crash types. The vehicle may veer into the adjacent lane, where it may collide oncoming cars, overturn, or run off the opposite side of the roadway and strike a fixed object or overturn on a slope.
The purpose of this course is to explain the important design, construction, and material selection for constructing Safety EdgeSM, to ensure that finished roads have no dangerous drop-offs. The target audience for this course is civil engineers who participate in highway construction projects.
Learning Objectives
Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:
- Describe proper and improper sites for Safety EdgeSM.
- Explain preparation of the pavement edge or shoulder.
- Identify slope measurement.
- Describe backing material placement.
- Identify considerations for asphalt concrete (AC) roads.
- Describe considerations for portland cement concrete (PCC) roads.
Certificate of Completion
You will be able to immediately print a certificate of completion after passing a multiple-choice quiz consisting of 10 questions. PDH credits are not awarded until the course is completed and quiz is passed.
| This course is applicable to professional engineers in: | ||
| Alabama (P.E.) | Alaska (P.E.) | Arkansas (P.E.) |
| Delaware (P.E.) | District of Columbia (P.E.) | Florida (P.E. Area of Practice) |
| Georgia (P.E.) | Idaho (P.E.) | Illinois (P.E.) |
| Illinois (S.E.) | Indiana (P.E.) | Iowa (P.E.) |
| Kansas (P.E.) | Kentucky (P.E.) | Louisiana (P.E.) |
| Maine (P.E.) | Maryland (P.E.) | Michigan (P.E.) |
| Minnesota (P.E.) | Mississippi (P.E.) | Missouri (P.E.) |
| Montana (P.E.) | Nebraska (P.E.) | Nevada (P.E.) |
| New Hampshire (P.E.) | New Jersey (P.E.) | New Mexico (P.E.) |
| New York (P.E.) | North Carolina (P.E.) | North Dakota (P.E.) |
| Ohio (P.E. Self-Paced) | Oklahoma (P.E.) | Oregon (P.E.) |
| Pennsylvania (P.E.) | South Carolina (P.E.) | South Dakota (P.E.) |
| Tennessee (P.E.) | Texas (P.E.) | Utah (P.E.) |
| Vermont (P.E.) | Virginia (P.E.) | West Virginia (P.E.) |
| Wisconsin (P.E.) | Wyoming (P.E.) | |



