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VTRC Home About VTRC Staff Ben Cottrell

Benjamin H. Cottrell, Jr., P.E.

Associate Principal Research Scientist

Research Interests:

Traffic Operations
Work Zone Traffic Control
Traffic Safety

Education:

M.S., Civil Engineering, University of Virginia
B.S., Civil Engineering, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Registrations:

Registered Professional Engineer, Commonwealth of Virginia

Memberships:

Institute of Transportation Engineers, Virginia Section

Awards:

VTRC Wallace T. McKeel Award, 2017
VTRC Jack H. Dillard Best Paper Award, "Systemic Evaluation of Wrong Way Driving Crashes and Countermeasures on Virginia’s Roads", (with E. Robartes and Hyun Cho), 2024

Current Projects

Use and Worker Perceptions of Wearable Lighted Apparel
Project No: 125841
Evaluating the Impact of Speed Safety Cameras in Interstate Work Zones
Project No: 125976
Incident Management in Complex Work Zones
Project No: 126017
Evaluation of a Driver Alerting System for a Truck Mounted Attenuator
Project No: 123952
Evaluation of Post Mounted Delineators and Curve Warning Message Markings
Project No: 124130

Reports

Evaluation of Adding Distance Information to Mainline Specific Service (Logo) Signs
Report No: 09-R17
Improving Night Work Zone Traffic Control
Report No: 00-R8
Determining the Effectiveness of Pavement Marking Materials
Report No: 01-R9
Evaluation of the Virginia Department of Transportation's Residential Traffic Calming Guide
Report No: 02-R15
Evaluation of Deer Warning Reflectors in Virginia
Report No: 03-TAR6
A Traffic Data Plan for Mechanistic-Empirical Pavement Designs (2002 Pavement Design Guide)
Report No: 04-R3
Guidelines for Using Centerline Rumble Strips in Virginia
Report No: 05-R30
Guidelines for Developing Transportation Management Plans in Virginia
Report No: 05-R33
Pavement Marking Visibility Requirements During Wet Night Conditions
Report No: 07-CR7
Evaluation of the AutoFlagger in Virginia
Report No: 07-R12
Visibility of Steel Plates Used in Connection with Highway Repairs
Report No: 07-R16
Review of Operations in the Virginia Department of Transportation's Project Development Process
Report No: 07-R24
Evaluation of the Historic Triangle Wayfinding Sign System
Report No: 09-R12
Evaluation of Retroreflective Material on Stop Sign Posts in Virginia
Report No: 09-R23
Review of the Virginia Department of Transportation’s Truck Weight Data Plan for the Mechanistic-Empirical Pavement Design Guide
Report No: 12-R4
Investigation of the Safety Effects of Edge and Centerline Markings on Narrow, Low-Volume Roads
Report No: 14-R3
Considerations for the Development of Work Zone Mobility Performance Measures and Thresholds for Virginia Freeways
Report No: 14-R6
A Benefit-Cost Analysis Tool for Assessing Guardrail Needs for Two-Lane Rural Roads in Virginia
Report No: 16-R5
Investigation of Truck Mounted Attenuator (TMA) Crashes in Work Zones in Virginia
Report No: 16-R7
Safety and Operations Guidance for Using Time-of-Day Protected-Permissive Left-Turn Phasing Using Flashing Yellow Arrows
Report No: 19-R10
Systemic Low-Cost Countermeasures for an Unsignalized Intersection Safety Improvement Plan for Virginia
Report No: 19-R5
Development of a Systemic Safety Improvement Plan for Two-Lane Rural Roads in Virginia
Report No: 21-R10
A Systemic Evaluation of Wrong Way Driving Crashes and Countermeasures on Virginia Roads
Report No: 25-R10
Evaluation of Chevron Patterns for Use on Traffic Control Devices in Street and Highway Work Zones
Report No: 80-R32
The Development of Criteria for the Treatment of Right Turn Movements on Rural Roads
Report No: 81-R45
Comparative Analysis of Reflective Sheeting
Report No: 82-R22
Guidelines for the Design and Placement of Curb Ramps
Report No: 82-R46
Guidelines for Selecting Matching Techniques for Ride Sharing
Report No: 83-R18
Evaluation of Channelizing Devices for Work Zones: Type II Barricades and Chevron Panels
Report No: 83-R21
Benefits and Safety Impact of Night Work-Zone Activities
Report No: 85-R10
Guidelines for Exclusive/Permissive Left-turn Signal Phasing
Report No: 85-R19
Evaluation of Wide Edgelines on Two-lane Rural Roads
Report No: 85-R37
Innovative Routing and Scheduling Concepts for Transit Systems
Report No: 85-R4
Transit Operator Absenteeism
Report No: 86-R23
Field Evaluation of Highway Safety Hardware Maintenance Guidelines
Report No: 87-R17
Evaluation of Wide Edgelines on Two-lane Rural Roads
Report No: 87-R23
Evaluation of a Procedure for Reducing Vehicle-Tree Accidents
Report No: 87-R25
Evaluation of Site Plan Review Procedures
Report No: 88-R27
Temporary Asphalt Medians for Two-lane, Two-way Operation
Report No: 89-R24
Traffic Management Teams: A Description and Action Plan for Virginia
Report No: 89-TTR1
An Operating Guide for the Control of Residential Cut-through Traffic
Report No: 90-TAR3
Review of Paved Shoulders
Report No: 90-TAR7
Using the Traffic Monitoring Guide to Develop a Truck Weight Sampling Procedure for Use in Virginia: Final Report
Report No: 92-R17
Evaluation of Weigh-in-Motion Systems
Report No: 92-R8
Evaluation of the International Barrier Corporation's Mark VII Median Barrier
Report No: 93-R1
The Avoidance of Weigh Stations in Virginia by Overweight Trucks
Report No: 93-R2
Evaluation of a Movable Concrete Barrier System
Report No: 94-R10
Evaluation of a Video Image Detection System
Report No: 94-R22
Guidelines for the Use of No U-turn and No Left-turn Signs
Report No: 95-R5
Evaluation of the Use of Strobe Lights in the Red Lens of Traffic Signals
Report No: 95-TAR5
Using All-way Stop Control for Residential Traffic Management
Report No: 96-R17
Investigation of the Impact of Snow Removal Activities on Pavement Markings in Virginia
Report No: 96-R3
Evaluation of Pavement Markings for Improved Visibility During Wet Night Conditions
Report No: 96-R33
Evaluation of Urethane and Carbide-tipped Blades on Wheel-supported Snow Plows
Report No: 97-R10
Assessment of Advanced Warning Signs for Flagging Operations
Report No: 99-R20

Benjamin H. Cottrell, Jr., P.E.

Ben.Cottrell@VDOT.Virginia.gov

(434) 293-1932

Team Membership

Safety, Operations, and Traffic Engineering

Last updated: January 29, 2025