Pavement markings are essential for guiding road users on both state and local paved roads during the day and night and under various weather conditions. The choice of pavement marking materials—such as wet retroreflective and retroreflective media—depends on several factors. These factors include the cost of materials, durability requirements of the roadway, presence of street lighting, presence of rumble strips, type of pavement, average daily traffic (ADT), contractor availability, snowplow operations, functional classification of the roadway, and its general location. Additional considerations may involve whether to recess the markings or provide contrast markings. Given these variables, the pavement marking type selection is inconsistent across the four Regions of the South Dakota Department of Transportation (SDDOT).
