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Home / MUTCD / Work Zones

MUTCD Work Zone Requirements — Tapers, Flaggers & Buffer Space

Temporary traffic control is Part 6 of the MUTCD, 11th Edition. Every work zone has the same four parts — advance warning, transition, activity, and termination — and the transition taper length comes from two formulas every traffic control supervisor knows.

RequirementMUTCD 11th Ed. StandardSection
The four areasAdvance warning area, transition area, activity area, termination area (Figure 6B-1)§6B.03
Merging taper — 45 mph+L = W × S (taper length = lane-width shift × speed)§6B.08, Table 6B-4
Merging taper — 40 mph and underL = W × S² ÷ 60§6B.08, Table 6B-4
Buffer spaceLongitudinal and/or lateral space separating traffic from the work space — never used for equipment or material storage§6B.06
Flagger paddleSTOP/SLOW paddle, octagonal, 18 × 18 in. minimum on a rigid handle — the primary hand-signaling device§6D.02
High-visibility apparelANSI/ISEA 107 Performance Class 2 or 3 required for workers within the right-of-way§6C.05

Worth knowing

  • The 11th Edition restructured Part 6 — taper formulas and TTC-zone components moved into Chapter 6B, and flagger control into Chapter 6D. Older state manuals cite 6C/6E for the same material.
  • A shifting taper is half the length of a merging taper; a shoulder taper one-third (Table 6B-4).
  • Flaggers must be positioned far enough ahead of the work space to give drivers stopping distance — and never standing in a live lane at night without illumination.
  • OSHA enforces worker protection in work zones separately — see our OSHA construction safety guides.
Source: Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, 11th Edition (Federal Highway Administration, December 2023, public domain) — read the full manual at mutcd.fhwa.dot.gov. Your state may still be operating under the 2009 edition or a state supplement — for state construction specs, see the DOT specifications library.
Sign Placement →Regulatory Signs →Warning Signs →