Utility Poles

Utility poles located on the roadside substantially affect the safe operation of roads. Utility pole crashes, which involve vehicles leaving the traveled lane, encroaching the roadside, and striking a utility pole, usually rank the second on the list of fixed-object crashes and lead to considerable number of fatalities and injuries each year. This article discusses the safety problem related to utility poles and analyzes their contributing factors and safety performance functions. The importance of clear zones in reducing utility pole crashes is also emphasized. Lastly, countermeasures to treat utility poles are summarized including: keeping vehicles on the roadway, placing utility lines underground, relocating utility poles to locations less likely to be struck, increasing lateral offset of utility poles, decreasing the number of utility poles, using breakaway or energy absorbing poles, shielding utility poles with safety devices, and delineating utility poles in hazard locations.