Traffic Incident Management in Metro Detroit: Regional Collaboration for Safe and Efficient Transportation Operations
Richard F. Beaubien, P.E., P.T.O.E.
Hubbell, Roth & Clark, Inc.
Introduction
The Metropolitan Detroit
Incident Management Coordinating Committee has been operating since 1992.
Public agencies and private interests initially formed the ad hoc
group to improve detection of and response to traffic incidents.
State department of transportation officials, state police officials,
and local government officials received support from their top management to
cooperate in responding to incidents. Private
organizations including broadcast media and tow operators have joined in the
coordination effort. Early
accomplishments of this group include combining the Michigan State Police
dispatch operations with the Michigan Department of Transportation
Intelligent Transportation System Center and establishing a Freeway Courtesy
Patrol. The Incident Management
Committee has been adopted by ITS Michigan and serves most of the functions
expected of a regional transportation operations organization.
History
The Metropolitan Detroit
Incident Management Committee started as an ad hoc group in 1992 when
organizations interested in improving response to traffic incidents joined
forces to develop a program for Metropolitan Detroit.
In the early 1990s, the agreement for cooperation was formalized with
letters of commitment from the Director of the Michigan Department of
Transportation (MDOT), the Director of the Michigan State Police and the
Executive Director of the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG).
SEMCOG acted as a surrogate for local governments in Metropolitan
Detroit whose public safety officers are an important element in developing
a successful incident management program.
Because the responders to incidents in metropolitan Detroit are
taking advantage of the Intelligent Transportation Systems technologies, the
Metropolitan Detroit Incident Management Coordinating Committee has been
adopted as a committee of the Intelligent Transportation Society of
Michigan. This adoption
recognizes that responders are, in fact, users of Intelligent Transportation
Systems technology.
Who’s Involved
In general terms, incident
responders involved in the committee include police, fire, hazardous
materials responders, emergency medical, tow vehicles, road agencies and the
broadcast media. Specifically,
in metropolitan Detroit, the organizations involved in the incident
management committee come from a variety of agencies offering different
perspectives. Membership
is open to any interested party and includes:
· Public / Government
o Federal / State Agencies / Universities
§ Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)
§ Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT)
§ Michigan State Police (MSP)
§ Michigan State University (MSU)
o Regional
§ Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG)
o Counties / Cities / Townships
§ Counties
· Road Commission for Oakland County (RCOC)
· Road Commission for Macomb County (RCMC)
· Wayne County Roads
§ Cities
· Detroit
· Troy
· Courtesy Patrol Operators
o AAA Michigan
o Emergency Road Response (ERR)
· Media
o WWJ Radio (AM 950)
o Mobility Technologies/Traffic Pulse
o AAA Michigan
o Channel 2 (Fox 2)
o Channel 4 (WDIV)
o Channel 7 (WXYZ)
· Consultants
o Hubbell, Roth & Clark, Inc.
· International Border Crossings
o Detroit-Windsor Tunnel
o
Ambassador Bridge
Accomplishments
In the mid-1990s, the Incident Management Committee developed a program for improving incident response in metropolitan Detroit entitled “The Blueprint for Action.” The Blueprint for Action developed a list of twelve recommendations and attached a timeframe, lead agency, and estimated cost for each of these recommendations. As a result of the Blueprint for Action planning, four (4) major improvements have been made to the incident management response effort in metropolitan Detroit. They are:
- Combining of the Michigan State Police dispatch operations with the MDOT Intelligent Transportation Systems Center in Detroit: Michigan State Police dispatchers for metropolitan Detroit are physically located in the Transportation Systems Center with access to all of the closed-circuit television cameras (CCTV) available on the metropolitan Detroit freeway system. This allows the Michigan State Police dispatchers to view approximately 200 closed-circuit television cameras covering approximately 200 miles of metropolitan Detroit freeways. This access helps dispatchers send fire and ambulance responders, when appropriate, to the scene of an incident even before the state police officer gets on the scene.
- Expansion of the CCTV camera and variable message sign coverage on metropolitan Detroit freeways: At the time of the development of the Blueprint for Action, the freeway surveillance system covered approximately 32 miles in downtown Detroit. The system has since been expanded to cover an additional 170 miles of metropolitan Detroit freeways, including cameras and signs adjacent to the freeways at Detroit Metropolitan Airport.
- Establishment of the Freeway Courtesy Patrol: The Freeway Courtesy Patrol started with one van privately supported to assist motorists traveling I-75 in downtown Detroit. Freeway Courtesy Patrol coverage has now expanded to include more than 30 vehicles operating on nearly all of the metropolitan Detroit freeways. The Freeway Courtesy Patrol is now assisting stranded motorists at the rate of approximately 27,000 assists per year.
- Encourage the state legislature to change the law regarding abandoned vehicles: The abandoned vehicle time limit has been reducing from 48 hours to 18 hours, in stages with two separate legislative actions. Removing abandoned vehicles more quickly from the roadside has made metropolitan Detroit freeways safer.
Update of Detroit
Incident Management Blueprint for Action
In the spring of 2003 the
Metro Detroit Incident Management Committee conducted a self-evaluation with
the assistance of the Federal Highway Administration Division Office.
Using the FHWA evaluation criteria, the committee members rated the
incident management operations against numerous federal criteria.
This exercise identified the strengths of the existing process and
pointed to areas where improvements should be sought.
This led the committee to an evaluation of its recommendations and
priority actions, initially established in the mid-1990s.
As a first step in setting a
new direction for the incident management process in Metropolitan Detroit,
the committee reviewed the original recommendations from the Blueprint for
Action, evaluated the status of the recommendations, and developed an action
plan for each of the activities. In
some cases, the committee decided that the mission was accomplished.
In other cases, new efforts were identified to facilitate earlier
recommendations. Finally, some
new initiatives were identified for the committee.
Establishing
Subcommittees for Incident Management Activities
Early in 2004 the Incident
Management Committee decided to establish subcommittees so that more of the
incident management organizational work could be accomplished in specific
focus areas with periodic reports to the overall Incident Management
Committee. The initial
organization of the subcommittees features six focus areas.
The first was traffic incident management planning.
This area was intended to undertake the process of updating the
Blueprint for Action, recommending incident management projects, providing
support for the Great Lakes ITS funding program, and providing a national
perspective on incident management activities.
The second subcommittee is
focused on arterial traffic management.
This committee is assigned the task of resolving boundary issues and
the integration of arterial and freeway operations.
The third committee focuses on courtesy patrol operations.
This committee has been assigned responsibility to develop and update
operating guidelines, review proposals for system expansion in both
geographic area and time of day. The
committee is also assigned to review supporting technology and the analysis
of data relating to freeway courtesy patrol operations.
The fourth subcommittee is focused on freeway operations.
This committee is developing an outreach program to responding
agencies, will also be reporting on performance and benefits of freeway
operations improvements, developing after action reviews, and developing
incident management procedures. A
fifth subcommittee is focused on abandoned vehicle issues. This committee will suggest legislative action, coordinate
with freeway courtesy patrol operations, and review the existing tag/removal
procedures used by the Michigan State Police for abandoned vehicles.
The committee will also analyze data related to abandoned vehicles so
that they program a more effective removal of abandoned vehicles from
roadsides can be developed.
Regional
Transportation Operations
The Metro Detroit Incident
Management Committee is working in many of the areas one would expect of a
Regional Transportation Operations Organization. Partners in incident management are managing major incidents
on metro Detroit freeways, developing compatible traffic control technology
procedures, and distributing traveler information.
One of the critical elements
for regional transportation organizations is the integration of resources,
personnel and systems among multiple partners.
This has already occurred with the integration of the operations of
the Michigan State Police dispatch in metro Detroit and the Michigan
Intelligent Transportations System Center.
The Michigan State Police are using the closed circuit television
cameras to improve their emergency responses on approximately 200 miles of
metro Detroit freeways. There
is a microwave link connecting the MITSC in Detroit with the Traffic
Operations Center of the Road Commission for Oakland County in Pontiac.
This microwave link allows CCTV camera pictures to be shared between
the two traffic operations centers.
Another critical element for
regional transportation organizations is the integration of functions to
provide coordinated operations. This
occurs with the integration of the MITSC operations of MDOT and the
functions of the Michigan State Police regional dispatch center.
Coordinated operations between MDOT and RCOC occur because of the
connection with the two traffic operations centers.
Because many of the elements for regional transportations organizations are present in the Metro Detroit Incident Management Coordination Committee, this Committee is developing a concept document to outline steps toward a regional operations organization for metro Detroit. Early indications are that integration of border crossing operations and transit operations would be the first steps in broadening the scope of the Committee’s activities. Integration with the new Traffic Operations Centers in Macomb County and the City of Detroit is another near term objective.
Author’s Information
Richard F. Beaubien, P.E., P.T.O.E.
Associate and Transportation Department Head
Hubbell, Roth & Clark, Inc. (HRC)
555 Hulet Drive
Bloomfield Hills, Michigan 48302
Phone: (248) 454-6381
Fax: (248) 338-2592
Email: dbeaubien@hrc-engr.com