TTC Report
Social and Environmental Responsibility Task Force Report: Temporary Traffic Control Committee TO:
ATSSA Operating Committee
FR:
ATSSA Temporary Traffic Control Committee Todd Melin, Tim Bradley, David Foy
RE:
Social and Environmental Responsibility Task Force Report
Everyone agrees with the need to recycle plastic temporary traffic control products. Recycling should remain a never ending cycle as the recycling symbol shows us. More and more traffic control products are manufactured using recycled plastic and the end users are finding more and more ways to recycle unusable products. Crushed plastic drums are even being reformed and placed back on the highway, making them 100% recycled. Tire rubber is being recycled into delineator post bases and rubber speed bumps. For each 12 pounds of recycled rubber product purchased, one passenger tire is kept out of a landfill.
Technology has improved in ways that have resulted in decreasing waste and increasing efficiency. The extensive use of LED Lights and solar assisted lights have reduced the amount of plastic required in the light case because of the reduction in batteries required resulting in smaller cases. The increase in battery life has saved space in our landfills and has lessened environmental damage from battery disposal. In many cases, smaller D-cell batteries have replaced the larger 6 volt batteries. Again, technology is helping save space in the landfill.
Some of our temporary traffic control products are using the sun as an energy source. Solar powered warning lights are reducing battery replacement even more. Flashing arrow panels and changeable message boards have been converted from diesel engine power to solar panels. This change has reduced air and noise pollution and has lessened the chance for fuel spills.
All temporary traffic control products from companies represented by ATSSA display great social responsibility- They save lives. Our industry has shown the driving public and our government officials that money spent on highway safety products has a direct impact on the reduction of fatalities on our roadways. One traffic control product, retro-reflective clothing and vests has spread the idea of a lifesaving product across many industries. The highway worker is now just a small portion of workers who go to work with a vest on. Like the highway worker, police, fire and EMS personnel make vests part of their standard gear. But now, retro-
reflective vests are seen on warehouse workers, trash collectors, shopping cart collectors and even TV reporters. Retro-reflective clothing is even making our exercise safer. Orange and lime clothing and vests are worn by many bikers, runners and walkers.
Summary Recycling has become part of our everyday life. As an industry, we need to continue to reuse and recycle as many products as possible, especially plastic. We need to pursue technology that will allow more reflective covered plastic to be recycled. We need to find ways to increase the life of temporary traffic control products so that they will stay out of the landfill and on the road longer. Recycling has to be cost effective to be a benefit to everyone involved. If recycling a product or using recycled resources cost more than a new product, the process will never be effective or widely practiced. As stated earlier, safety and saving lives is the backbone of all temporary traffic control products. Safer practices in the work zone increase productivity and cause less impact on the motoring public. ATSSA continues to push for changes in policies and products that make a more responsible use of our time and of our resources.
ATSSA Operating Committee
FR:
ATSSA Temporary Traffic Control Committee Todd Melin, Tim Bradley, David Foy
RE:
Social and Environmental Responsibility Task Force Report
Everyone agrees with the need to recycle plastic temporary traffic control products. Recycling should remain a never ending cycle as the recycling symbol shows us. More and more traffic control products are manufactured using recycled plastic and the end users are finding more and more ways to recycle unusable products. Crushed plastic drums are even being reformed and placed back on the highway, making them 100% recycled. Tire rubber is being recycled into delineator post bases and rubber speed bumps. For each 12 pounds of recycled rubber product purchased, one passenger tire is kept out of a landfill.
Technology has improved in ways that have resulted in decreasing waste and increasing efficiency. The extensive use of LED Lights and solar assisted lights have reduced the amount of plastic required in the light case because of the reduction in batteries required resulting in smaller cases. The increase in battery life has saved space in our landfills and has lessened environmental damage from battery disposal. In many cases, smaller D-cell batteries have replaced the larger 6 volt batteries. Again, technology is helping save space in the landfill.
Some of our temporary traffic control products are using the sun as an energy source. Solar powered warning lights are reducing battery replacement even more. Flashing arrow panels and changeable message boards have been converted from diesel engine power to solar panels. This change has reduced air and noise pollution and has lessened the chance for fuel spills.
All temporary traffic control products from companies represented by ATSSA display great social responsibility- They save lives. Our industry has shown the driving public and our government officials that money spent on highway safety products has a direct impact on the reduction of fatalities on our roadways. One traffic control product, retro-reflective clothing and vests has spread the idea of a lifesaving product across many industries. The highway worker is now just a small portion of workers who go to work with a vest on. Like the highway worker, police, fire and EMS personnel make vests part of their standard gear. But now, retro-
reflective vests are seen on warehouse workers, trash collectors, shopping cart collectors and even TV reporters. Retro-reflective clothing is even making our exercise safer. Orange and lime clothing and vests are worn by many bikers, runners and walkers.
Summary Recycling has become part of our everyday life. As an industry, we need to continue to reuse and recycle as many products as possible, especially plastic. We need to pursue technology that will allow more reflective covered plastic to be recycled. We need to find ways to increase the life of temporary traffic control products so that they will stay out of the landfill and on the road longer. Recycling has to be cost effective to be a benefit to everyone involved. If recycling a product or using recycled resources cost more than a new product, the process will never be effective or widely practiced. As stated earlier, safety and saving lives is the backbone of all temporary traffic control products. Safer practices in the work zone increase productivity and cause less impact on the motoring public. ATSSA continues to push for changes in policies and products that make a more responsible use of our time and of our resources.
