Time to Roadway Clearance 2007-2012
Delcan’s Cheryl-Marie Hansberger details how Georgia’s Towing and Recovery Incentive Program (TRIP) has improved road safety and helped to reduce traffic congestion in the metro Atlanta region.
By 2008, steady increases in population had led the232 Texas Transportation Institute to declare Atlanta, Georgia to be the third most congested city in the US. In an effort to increase road user safety and mitigate the effects of traffic, the 754 Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) and its local partners have implemented a variety of programmes related to safety improvement and traffic mitigation. Many of these programmes include cutting-edge intelligent transportation systems and incident management (IM) strategies. In addition to traditional programmes designed to increase safety, such as seat belt laws and prohibiting texting while driving, the state has also implemented a variety of IM programmes designed to clear roadways, enhance motorist and responder safety and minimise the potential for secondary incidents.
Statistics from the324 US Department of Transportation indicate that at the national level secondary incidents are estimated to represent 20% of all crashes. In their 1999 paper Matthew Karlaftis, Steven Latoski, Nadine Richards and Kumares Sinha concluded that the likelihood of a secondary crash increases by 2.8% for each minute a primary incident continues to be a hazard. These statistics highlighted that there was an opportunity to further increase motorist and responder safety while enhancing the driving public’s experience.
At a more local level, in the Atlanta metro region there were particular considerations related to its being a major hub for freight and goods movement. Accidents and breakdowns involving large commercial vehicles were a significant impediment to local mobility.
Performance criteria for towing and recovery companies
• Once deployed to an appropriate incident, the towing and recovery supervisor must arrive on scene within 30 minutes of notification (45 minutes outside of peak travel times).
• Once deployed to an appropriate incident during standard operating hours (5:30am–7:00 pm, Monday to Friday), basic equipment must arrive within 45 minutes. During non-standard hours, the equipment is allowed 60 minutes to arrive.
• The towing and recovery company must remain on scene until they receive an official notice to proceed to clear the incident from the roadway.
• Upon receiving the notice to proceed, the towing and recovery company must have the roadway cleared and open to traffic within 90 minutes. As a result of these factors, GDOT and partnering public sector agencies, as well as private companies, collaborated to deploy an innovative roadway safety programme designed to quickly clear major incidents from live lanes, thereby reducing traffic congestion and related secondary crashes.285 Delcan, an international engineering firm with extensive experience in IM, was engaged by GDOT to design and execute the solution, a programme currently known as the Towing and Recovery Incentive Program (TRIP).
TRIP is a public-private partnership between GDOT, the Georgia Regional Transportation Authority, the Towing and Recovery Association of Georgia, the831 Federal Highway Administration and Delcan. It works in close coordination with the metro Atlanta Traffic Incident Management Enhancement Task Force and I-95 Corridor Coalition.
The safety benefits of TRIP’s quick-clearance focus are most immediately realised in the rapid removal of wrecked vehicles from live lanes. The sooner a disabled tractor-trailer unit is moved to the roadside, the faster the traffic flow returns to normal, greatly reducing the likelihood of another incident occurring in the back-up. To date, TRIP has been able to reduce clearance times (for both private and commercial vehicles) to an average of 105 minutes.
While achieving these transportation safety measures, the programme has not lost sight of the importance of ensuring the safety of incident responders - losing a responder is one of the largest risks to those in the public safety arena. The response operators, the Task Force and those managing the incentive scheme work together to emphasise the heightened safety for TRIP’s service providers. Participating private companies must adhere to a stringent application and screening process and supply personnel who have completed training courses in IM and scene safety guidelines. TRIP’s specifications stipulate financial penalties for those who fail to observe these standards with the ultimate potential for removal from the programme for multiple violations.
In addition, TRIP tow truck operators are required to engage in continual training, often alongside law enforcement and public safety professionals, to increase their skills and build stronger relationships with those commanding incident recoveries. Each discipline gains a better understanding of the others’ technical expertise and roles, leading to improved safety for each individual as they execute their real-world responsibilities at the incident scene.
Furthermore, every month, TRIP companies gather with HERO supervisors and other first responders to conduct after-incident review sessions. Together, they gain insights into lessons learned during TRIP incidents that occurred the previous month, which fosters greater innovation and overall performance. Safety concerns are always paramount at these meetings.
The towing and recovery companies have also financially benefitted as well since they receive a monetary incentive if they meet a series of requirements (see sidebar, ‘Performance criteria for towing and recovery companies’).
In the event that the roadway is not cleared and opened to traffic within three hours of the notice to proceed, and the fault for the delay lies with the towing and recovery company, liquidated damages are assessed. These fines include a flat $600 fee and an additional $10 per minute assessment for each minute over three hours that the roadway remains blocked.
TRIP provides an innovative incident management approach that other jurisdictions should look to as a potential solution. While the results of multiple independent evaluations have clearly demonstrated the value of TRIP in terms of costs savings and reduced congestion perhaps the best indicator of Georgia’s incident management success comes from statistics provided by the834 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA): since the initial benchmark leading into the launch of the TRIP programme (dated 2007), there has been a 25% reduction in traffic fatalities in Georgia over a five-year period.
Criteria for activating TRIP program
Trucks over 11.8t (26,000 lbs), ‘Bobtail’ tractors and truck tractor/semi-trailer combinations (DOT Class 7 or 8)
• Rollover blocking any of the travel lanes
• Multiple truck crash
• Jackknifed and not drivable
• Lost/shifted load on or affecting the travel lanes
• Lost tandems or front axle or buckled trailer on or affecting a travel lane
• Truck fire with tyres burned off or cargo spilled
• Major impact with guard rail, bridge support or structure on top of a barrier wall
Large motor homes 12.2m (40ft) and longer and motor coaches (DOT Class 5 and 6)
• Rollover on the travel lanes
• Fire with tyres burned off
• Major impact with a guard rail, bridge support or structure on top of a barrier wall
Buses with 16 or more passengers (DOT Class 6, 7 & 8)
• Rollover on or off travel lanes
• Crash with multiple injuries
• Fire with tyres burned off or burned luggage on the roadway
• Major impact with a guard rail, bridge support or structure on top of a barrier wall
Aircraft
• Any incident involving an aircraft on the Atlanta Interstate System
Note: In addition, any complex or extended incident where vehicles cannot be easily towed from the scene or are creating a hazard to traffic may be candidates for activating this Program.
By 2008, steady increases in population had led the
Statistics from the
At a more local level, in the Atlanta metro region there were particular considerations related to its being a major hub for freight and goods movement. Accidents and breakdowns involving large commercial vehicles were a significant impediment to local mobility.
Performance criteria for towing and recovery companies
• Once deployed to an appropriate incident, the towing and recovery supervisor must arrive on scene within 30 minutes of notification (45 minutes outside of peak travel times).
• Once deployed to an appropriate incident during standard operating hours (5:30am–7:00 pm, Monday to Friday), basic equipment must arrive within 45 minutes. During non-standard hours, the equipment is allowed 60 minutes to arrive.
• The towing and recovery company must remain on scene until they receive an official notice to proceed to clear the incident from the roadway.
• Upon receiving the notice to proceed, the towing and recovery company must have the roadway cleared and open to traffic within 90 minutes. As a result of these factors, GDOT and partnering public sector agencies, as well as private companies, collaborated to deploy an innovative roadway safety programme designed to quickly clear major incidents from live lanes, thereby reducing traffic congestion and related secondary crashes.
TRIP is a public-private partnership between GDOT, the Georgia Regional Transportation Authority, the Towing and Recovery Association of Georgia, the
Safety through incentive
The programme provides financial incentives for qualified heavy-duty towing and recovery companies arriving at the scene within set times and for clearing large commercial vehicle incidents within 90 minutes of receiving an official notice to proceed with recovery efforts (see box). These incentives range from $600 for response-only assistance, to $2,500 for meeting standard response and clearance goals and up to $3,500 for supplying additional equipment. This was an aggressive target when the scheme was implemented because at that time it took an average of 269 minutes (approximately 4.5 hours) to reopen travel lanes after incidents involving commercial vehicles.The safety benefits of TRIP’s quick-clearance focus are most immediately realised in the rapid removal of wrecked vehicles from live lanes. The sooner a disabled tractor-trailer unit is moved to the roadside, the faster the traffic flow returns to normal, greatly reducing the likelihood of another incident occurring in the back-up. To date, TRIP has been able to reduce clearance times (for both private and commercial vehicles) to an average of 105 minutes.
Working safely
The programme is chiefly administered through GDOT’s Highway Emergency Response Operators (HEROs) program with support from Delcan’s emergency transportation operations and IM experts. Since HERO supervisors are often the first responders, they are generally responsible for activating TRIP and ensuring that incident response and clearance times are met.While achieving these transportation safety measures, the programme has not lost sight of the importance of ensuring the safety of incident responders - losing a responder is one of the largest risks to those in the public safety arena. The response operators, the Task Force and those managing the incentive scheme work together to emphasise the heightened safety for TRIP’s service providers. Participating private companies must adhere to a stringent application and screening process and supply personnel who have completed training courses in IM and scene safety guidelines. TRIP’s specifications stipulate financial penalties for those who fail to observe these standards with the ultimate potential for removal from the programme for multiple violations.
In addition, TRIP tow truck operators are required to engage in continual training, often alongside law enforcement and public safety professionals, to increase their skills and build stronger relationships with those commanding incident recoveries. Each discipline gains a better understanding of the others’ technical expertise and roles, leading to improved safety for each individual as they execute their real-world responsibilities at the incident scene.
Furthermore, every month, TRIP companies gather with HERO supervisors and other first responders to conduct after-incident review sessions. Together, they gain insights into lessons learned during TRIP incidents that occurred the previous month, which fosters greater innovation and overall performance. Safety concerns are always paramount at these meetings.
Safety – and cost savings
While safety and time-saving benefits have been quickly realised from the implementation of this programme, independent analysis has revealed that TRIP has also resulted in substantial cost savings for transportation and planning agencies. This is quantified at $456,216 per incident and equates to a benefit-to-cost ratio of 11:1.The towing and recovery companies have also financially benefitted as well since they receive a monetary incentive if they meet a series of requirements (see sidebar, ‘Performance criteria for towing and recovery companies’).
In the event that the roadway is not cleared and opened to traffic within three hours of the notice to proceed, and the fault for the delay lies with the towing and recovery company, liquidated damages are assessed. These fines include a flat $600 fee and an additional $10 per minute assessment for each minute over three hours that the roadway remains blocked.
TRIP provides an innovative incident management approach that other jurisdictions should look to as a potential solution. While the results of multiple independent evaluations have clearly demonstrated the value of TRIP in terms of costs savings and reduced congestion perhaps the best indicator of Georgia’s incident management success comes from statistics provided by the
Criteria for activating TRIP program
Trucks over 11.8t (26,000 lbs), ‘Bobtail’ tractors and truck tractor/semi-trailer combinations (DOT Class 7 or 8)
• Rollover blocking any of the travel lanes
• Multiple truck crash
• Jackknifed and not drivable
• Lost/shifted load on or affecting the travel lanes
• Lost tandems or front axle or buckled trailer on or affecting a travel lane
• Truck fire with tyres burned off or cargo spilled
• Major impact with guard rail, bridge support or structure on top of a barrier wall
Large motor homes 12.2m (40ft) and longer and motor coaches (DOT Class 5 and 6)
• Rollover on the travel lanes
• Fire with tyres burned off
• Major impact with a guard rail, bridge support or structure on top of a barrier wall
Buses with 16 or more passengers (DOT Class 6, 7 & 8)
• Rollover on or off travel lanes
• Crash with multiple injuries
• Fire with tyres burned off or burned luggage on the roadway
• Major impact with a guard rail, bridge support or structure on top of a barrier wall
Aircraft
• Any incident involving an aircraft on the Atlanta Interstate System
Note: In addition, any complex or extended incident where vehicles cannot be easily towed from the scene or are creating a hazard to traffic may be candidates for activating this Program.
