Bituminous Insurance Companies

High-Visibility Vests for Emergency Responders

On November 24, 2008, a new federal regulation (23 CFR 634, Worker Visibility) goes into effect mandating that anyone working in the right-of-way of a federal-aid highway must be wearing high-visibility clothing that meets the Class 2 or 3 requirements of ANSI/ISEA 107, 2004 edition, American National Standard for High-Visibility Safety Apparel and Headwear, published by the International Safety Equipment Association (ISEA). This requirement will also apply to all emergency responders.

The following are excerpts from the standards:

§ 634.1 Purpose. - The purpose of the regulations in this part is to decrease the likelihood of worker fatalities or injuries caused by motor vehicles and construction vehicles and equipment while working within the right-of-way on Federal-aid highways.

§ 634.2 Definitions.

• Close proximity means within the highway right-of-way on Federal-aid highways.
• High-visibility safety apparel means personal protective safety clothing that is intended to provide conspicuity during both daytime and nighttime usage, and that meets the Performance Class 2 or 3 requirements of the ANSI/ISEA 107–2004 publication entitled ‘‘American National Standard for High-Visibility Safety Apparel and Headwear.’’ This publication is incorporated by reference in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR Part 51 and is on file at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA).
• Workers means people on foot whose duties place them within the right-of-way of a Federal-aid highway, such as highway construction and maintenance forces, survey crews, utility crews, responders to incidents within the highway right-of-way, and law enforcement personnel when directing traffic, investigating crashes, and handling lane closures, obstructed roadways, and disasters within the right-of-way of a Federal-aid highway.

§ 634.3 Rule. - All workers within the right-of-way of a Federal-aid highway who are exposed either to traffic (vehicles using the highway for purposes of travel) or to construction equipment within the work area shall wear high-visibility safety apparel.

§ 634.4 Compliance date. - States and other agencies shall comply with the provisions of this Part no later than November 24, 2008.

To comply with ANSI/ISEA 107-2004, a garment's background material, and retroreflective or combined-performance material, must be tested and certified by an independent, accredited third-party laboratory. The manufacturer of the finished item must also verify that the garment or headwear meets all the requirements of the standard and must provide a certificate of compliance for each model.

The specific change in the wording of the regulation may be found at http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/26mar20071500/edocket.access.gpo.gov/cfr_2007/aprqtr/pdf/23cfr634.1.pdf.

The new guidance is not without controversy. After 23 CFR 634 was finalized, a new Standard for Public Safety Vests was published as ANSI / ISEA 207; 2006 edition. Because ANSI/ISEA 207-2006 was not published until after 23 CFR 634 was finalized, the federal regulation could only reference ANSI 107-2004. Because of the design requirements, vests that meet the requirements of ANSI 207-2006 may not meet the requirements of ANSI 107-2004 and, therefore, may not currently meet the requirements of 23 CFR 634.

For more information on the issue, please see https://www.rkb.us/hints.cfm?content_id=200647&preview=1.

COPYRIGHT ©2008, ISO Services Properties, Inc.

The information contained in this publication was obtained from sources believed to be reliable. ISO Services Properties, Inc., its companies and employees make no guarantee of results and assume no liability in connection with either the information herein contained or the safety suggestions herein made. Moreover, it cannot be assumed that every acceptable safety procedure is contained herein or that abnormal or unusual circumstances may not warrant or require further or additional procedure.