• Drivers can become fatigued, bored, or less attentive on long tangent sections that impose few cognitive or visual demands.
• Consider using the countermeasures listed below on long tangent sections that prevent crashes or reduce the severity of crashes. Figure 8.1 illustrates some of these.
  • • • Install rumble strips on the shoulder and/or centerline.
      • Eliminate shoulder drop-offs.
      • Widen and pave shoulders.
      • Widen two-lane roads to establish a compact buffer median between lanes.
      • On multilane roads with narrow medians, install median barriers.
      • Design safe slopes and ditches and remove hazardous roadside obstacles to reduce the likelihood of vehicles overturning.
      • Install improved roadside hardware and barrier/attenuation systems to mitigate the severity of run-off-road crashes.

Figure 8.1 Countermeasures for Long Tangent Sections