---
title: "Rumble Strip"
url: "https://commonwaysystem.org/patterns/elements/rumble-strip/"
id: "ELM-RMS-07"
description: "A textured roadway surface, typically a series of shallow grooves or raised bars, that alerts drivers through vibration and sound when a vehicle crosses it."
updated: "2026-09-26"
---

# Rumble Strip

`ELM-RMS-07`

Situational / Discouraged Element

Rumble Strip

A textured roadway surface, typically a series of shallow grooves or raised bars, that alerts drivers through vibration and sound when a vehicle crosses it.

## Why this pattern exists

Rumble strips address inattention and lane departure rather than speed directly, giving a driver an audible and tactile cue at a specific location or along a stretch of roadway, distinct from the speed-reduction goal of vertical deflection treatments. This pattern exists to document that separate function and its own siting considerations.[1]

## Key considerations

-   Placement near residences requires care, since the noise generated can create a livability conflict for adjacent properties
-   Not effective at reducing speed on its own; better suited to alerting for an upcoming change (stop condition, curve, edge of pavement) than as a substitute for vertical speed control
-   Should not be used where it may pose a hazard to bicyclists sharing the roadway without an alternative path around it[2]

## Related patterns

[Vertical Speed Control](https://commonwaysystem.org/patterns/elements/vertical-speed-control.md) (ELM-VSC-06) (related but functionally distinct calming treatment); [Warning Sign](https://commonwaysystem.org/patterns/elements/warning-sign.md) (ELM-WNS-12) (often paired to alert of an upcoming condition)

## References

1.  Evidence-based [Persaud, B., Lyon, C., Eccles, K., and Soika, J., "Safety Evaluation of Centerline Plus Shoulder Rumble Strips," FHWA-HRT-15-048 (Federal Highway Administration, 2015); NCHRP Report 641.](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/publications/research/safety/15048/15048.pdf)
2.  Evidence-based [Federal Highway Administration, "Rumble Strips and Bicycle Accommodation," fact sheet.](https://highways.dot.gov/safety/rwd/keep-vehicles-road/rumble-strips/bicycles)