Traffic Management
Centers and Incident
Management Systems
2013 Mid-Continent Transportation Research Symposium –
August 15, 2013 – 10:00AM – 12:00PM
Cameron Kergaye, PhD, PE, PMP
Director of Research
Utah Department of Transportation
TMC Objectives and Challenges
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Respond to incidents
Manage traffic and mitigate congestion
Expand functionalities and service areas
Maintain dedicated staff with specialized skills and training
Replace outdated technologies
Traffic Management Center
• New $50M facility in 2001
• Modeled after Georgia DOT’s facility
• State of Art for Winter Olympics
• Advanced ITS technology
• Fiber optic communication
• Incident management services
• On site meteorologist
• 911 dispatch
UDOT’s TMC Challenges
• Components and Software
• Centralized signal software
• Video wall (rear projection)
• Procedures
• Security
• Dispatch
• Media
• New Director
• Expectations
Possible ‘Solutions’
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Update software
Install new components
Buy state of the art devices
Introduce new procedures
Use more efficient practices
Add additional services
Which do you choose?
Delcan Hard Shoulder Running Incident Certifications
Advertising 511 vs Apps HOT Lanes Fiber vs 4G I2
Replacement TELVENT Ramp Metering
Operator Retention Reversible Lanes PEMs
Weather Triggers UPS ITS Lifecycle CENTRACS
ScanWeb RISC Access vs Security OpenTMS MIST
Video Wall Equipment Signal Coordination
Variable Speed Limits TranSuite Contract
Employment Fog Control Media Outlets Data
Storage GIS Mapping Inter-Agency Coordination
Dispatch Services Toll Collection…
Research Approach
• Survey the states and visit select TMCs
• Visit new TMCs
• Meet recently updated TMCs
• Discuss software: custom vs off-the-shelf
• Investigate new services
• Learn from others’ achievements (or
mistakes)
TMC Study Phases
• Web-based survey
• 22 questions covering 9 subject areas
• 85 Recipients
• 54 Responding
• Field visits
• Eastern States
• Minnesota – Pennsylvania – Ohio – Virginia
• Western States
• California - Missouri
1- Control Room Operations
• Control room services software
• Video
• Variable message signs
• Highway advisory radio
• Traffic signals
• Incidents or special events
1- Control Room Operations
• Video Walls
• Most used a common display system
• More than half have upgraded since opening TMC
• Computer Aided Dispatch
• Two-thirds of agencies received this data from 911
dispatch centers
2- Operational Issues
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Hard shoulder running
Variable speed limits for weather conditions
Variable speed limits for speed harmonization
Reversible lanes on arterials
Reversible lanes on the interstate
Ramp meters for on-ramps
Ramp meters for system-to-system connections
3- Incident Management
• Reductions in incident clearance times
• More than half use performance measure or quickresponse towing programs.
• Slightly less than half establish and track performance.
• About a quarter encourage collaboration and
investigate crash sites.
4- Travel Information System
• Social media for traveller information
• Over half use Twitter
• Slightly less than half use Facebook or
other
• Social media policies
• Over half use a policy specifically for this
• One third or less do not have a social
media policy or use a department-wide
policy
5- Institutional Collaboration
• External Partnerships
• Media
• Law enforcement
• Medical or emergency responders
• Other transportation authorities
6- Maintenance of Existing System
• Tracking repair time for failures in ATMS
equipment
• Equally divided between tracking and not
tracking
7- Emergency Preparedness
• Training requirements
• Management
• Traffic signal engineer
• Traffic signal analyst/technician
• ITS engineer
• Traffic signal maintenance technician
• Electronic specialist
• TMC operator
• Public relations coordinator
8- Inclement Weather Operations
• Use of weather or road condition sensors
• 511 messages
• Variable speed limits
• Snow plow operations
• Signal timing plans
• Icy bridge signs
• High wind warning signs*
8- Inclement Weather Operations
• Weather information sources
• Nearly all used a national weather service (NOAA)
• Over half used a local news forecaster and/or internet
based weather information provider.
• One third used a TMC staff forecaster or contract
employee/service.
9- TMC Policies
• Most use performance measures
• Traffic performance
• Incident management
• Performance measure reporting
• Most generate an internal report (formal or informal)
• One fifth generate an informal external report
• Two generate a formal external report
Field Responses
• 4 day scan in June
• St. Paul, MN
• Pittsburgh, PN
• Columbus, OH
• Fairfax Co, VA
• 3 day scan in July
• Sacramento, CA
• Oakland, CA
• Kansas City, MO
Minnesota TMC
• Considering a citizen reporting program for winter road
conditions
• Ramp metering policy
• maximum wait time of 4 minutes for on-ramps and 2
minutes for system-to-system ramps
• currently volume-based, may switch to density-based
• At least two traffic controller manufacturers compete (for
pricing)
Pennsylvania TMC
• Value of systems engineer background
• Replaces bulb filaments in projectors
• Uses a visual classification system for winter road
conditions
• 511 system to be replaced by mobile phone apps
• Uses a fully-automated weather response system to
provide early stage storm warnings
Ohio TMC
• Combines ITS and signal maintenance
• ITS and signal devices
• 5-year warranty
• 10-year replacement plan
• Dispatchers run 24-hr blogs during storms to interact with
maintenance crews
• Snow plow drivers interpret weather data
• UPS at every signalized intersection
Virginia TMC
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Co-location of VDOT, law enforcement and fire dispatch
All control operators and supervisors are contracted
ITS maintenance contracted out
IM truck outfitted with 4g mobile cameras
Single vendor manages access to video streaming and
traffic data feeds
CalTrans TMCs
• Wind speed of 25 mph as trigger
• May allow media companies to replace VMSs with fullmatrix signs
• Supports both 511 system and web applications
• Hard-shoulder running implemented on arterial streets
• DELCAN platform for system-wide adaptive ramp
metering
Kansas City TMC
• Does not archive video
• Operates hard-shoulder running for buses during peak
hours
• Provides brochures to the public
• Ramp Metering
• Operation Green Light
• Incident Management
Conclusions for UDOT
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Employment of a systems engineer
Minimization of controller compatibility issues
Preference for web/apps over telephone systems
Development of a ramp metering policy
Enhancements to control room – natural light
Certification of traffic signal technicians.