November 2014 Request for Information About Road Closure Tracking Tools

November 2014 Request for information about Road Closure Tracking tools

Question:

From: / "Eileen Singleton"
Subject: / 2014 Request for information about Road Closure Tracking tools

Hello Ops Academy Colleagues,

- do you have one road closure tracking tool that multiple agencies access / use or do agencies have their own road closure tracking tools that can send data to other tools

- if you use a multi-agency tool, who developed it and who maintains it

- do you have a standard definition of "road closure" (at least one lane, whole road, closure at least 30 minutes?) used by multiple agencies

- once the road closure information is entered, who owns the data, who decides how it can be used / disseminated (if agencies access data from other agencies)

- can the public access the data in the road closure tracking application

- how is the data entered - desktop, mobile app

- where is the data stored - one agency's server, cloud, other

- is there a formal governance structure / board / agreement to oversee the multi-agency application

As always, thanks so much for your help!

Eileen Singleton, P.E.

Principal Transportation Engineer Baltimore Metropolitan Council Offices @ McHenry Row

1500 Whetstone Way, Suite 300 Baltimore, MD 21230

410-732-0500 x 1033

410-732-8248 (fax)

Answer:

From: / "Vega, Peter"
Subject: / Re: 2014 Request for information about Road Closure Tracking tools

Eileen,

FDOT District Two and FHP has begun to implement the use of WebEOC for road closure applications. We have not initiated the capability of sending to other tools but every partnering agency has access to a website that grabs their information. The difference is that partnering agencies will have to keep a browser open to see the information since it does not go directly to their software.

We hope to try to do this in the future but the challenge has been getting partnering agencies to utilize this software on a regular basis.

Peter Vega, P.E.

TSM&O Program Manager

Florida Department of Transportation

2198 Edison Avenue Jacksonville, FL 32204

Work Number (904) 360-5463

Answer:

From: / "German, Paula (DOT)"
Subject: / Re: 2014 Request for information about Road Closure Tracking tools

Eileen,

I provide some responses below your questions and on the attached samples. I hope this helps.Sincerely,

Hello Ops Academy Colleagues,

I am looking for information on road closure tracking applications, specifically for details on tools that are used by multiple agencies (local jurisdictions and state agencies and/or multiple states). Looking for information such as: - do you have one road closure tracking tool that multiple agencies access / use or do agencies have their own road closure tracking tools that can send data to other tools.

In this area, more than tracking the idea is to manage Planned Roadway Work Schedule to minimize delays and safety problems during the event. This is facilitated by the requirement to secure pre-approval for any roadway work with the potential to negatively impact traffic conditions. With that in mind, the main deployment of information -Tracking tool is NY511 for planned Roadwork and incidents as well as for real time traffic conditions. The data management tool feeding 511 is shared by multiple agencies.

-If you use a multi-agency tool, who developed it and who maintains it

There are multiple agencies and procedures feeding data into NY511. The software(Open Reach) was developed by consultant forces phases- funded by DOT and others.

Paula German, P.E.

Civil Engineer II

NYSDOT INFORM-Long Island ITS

140 Nicon Court Hauppauge, NY11788 631 904 3003

Answer:

From: / "Faisal Saleem - MCDOTX"
Subject: / Re: 2014 Request for information about Road Closure Tracking tools

Eileen,

Below is a brief response to your request. Thanks.

Hello Ops Academy Colleagues,

- do you have one road closure tracking tool that multiple agencies access / use or do agencies have their own road closure tracking tools that can send data to other tools

We use both approaches in the Maricopa County Region. Agencies have access to the ADOT HCRS system to directly input the data for 511 dissemination. Also, some agencies such as Maricopa County DOT (MCDOT) have their own data entry system which is also integrated with the ADOT 511 system.

- if you use a multi-agency tool, who developed it and who maintains it

The tools were developed by ADOT and MCDOT and maintained by the respective agencies.

As mentioned MCDOT’s tool is integrated with ADOT 511 system and automatically passes date to the 511 system. Some City agencies also use the same system. Users thus do not have to make multiple entries. The data is integrated in Regional Archived Data System with

Faisal Saleem

ITS Branch Manager & Chair

AZTech Advanced Traveler Information Systems WG Maricopa County DOT

Tel: (602) 506 1241

Answer:

From: / "Coody, Kenneth 'Ken' (VDOT)"
Subject: / Re: 2014 Request for information about Road Closure Tracking tools

Eileen,

In Hampton Roads as well as Northern Virginia we use two systems that are not currently connected but expect them to feed each other by the end of 2015. The first one is Lane Closure Advisory Management System (LCAMS) and the other is VA Traffic. Both of these internet based systems were developed by Open Roads Consulting. LCAMS is used to plan lane closures whereas VA Traffic is used to show current work.

LCAMS took the place of paper request and is used by anyone wanting a lane closure (after they receive training and a user name/password).

Additional responses below

Ken Coody

Regional Traffic Operations Manager Eastern Region

Office: 757-925-2557

Mobile: 757-592-1040

Answer:

From: / "Eibel, Henry"
Subject: / Re: 2014 Request for information about Road Closure Tracking tools

Eileen,

The New Jersey Turnpike Authority (NJTA) has recently commissioned the development of a Traffic Permitting and Lane Closure application in order to provide the following benefits:

Resolve existing paper-based method to digital method.

Provide an audit trail of each lane closure record (who did what when).

Increase NJTA Operations efficiency in daily management of traffic permits and lane closure requests.

Minimize NJTA exposure to liability of contractors on roadway with expired permits.

Provide for better communications of lane closure request approval/denial status back to contractors.

Data validation/verification (taper points, closure times, location, roadway naming, etc.)

More efficient use of existing closures by contractors, maintenance.

FUTURE: Provide direct communication to patrons of lane closure events. The NJTA Operations Traffic Permitting and Lane Closure application is a cloud-based application providing internal and external users secured access via a modern web browser interface, supporting both desktop and mobile accessibility. The cloud environment provides a high-performance, high-availability, all-inclusive platform for rapid development and minimal expense. Agile development and management practices are employed, allowing a phased approach to provide early core functionality and additional functionality based on NJTA Operations feedback and prioritization. Web services architecture allow instant development changes (fixes, updates, revisions). The current live implementation of the NJTA Operations Traffic Permitting and Lane Closure application is focused on core data workflow functionality, lane closure record creation and management, user security management, traffic permit management, and publishing of daily/weekly reports. The next development phase is focused on automated taper point table integration, authorized report communication, State Police activity integration, and record approval workflow. Some statistics about the NJTA Operations Traffic Permitting and Lane Closure application are:

~500 lane closure records weekly average under management by NJTA Operations (~850 records across all roadways)

200+ Traffic Permits loaded, managing NJTA liability on all lane closure requests

16 contractors found to be requesting lane closures against expired traffic permits!

~350 users (NJTA Operations, NJTA Maintenance, NJTA Engineering, Contractors, Resident Engineers, etc.)

Average of 100 unique user requests handled by application per day

99.9% application availability over past 8 weeks NJTA Operation is willing to provide a demonstration of the application if desired. Response to questions provide by Eileen Singleton:

Do you have one road closure tracking tool that multiple agencies access / use or do agencies have their own road closure tracking tools that can send data to other tools?

NJTA currently uses only one road closure tracking tool. The NJTA Operations Traffic Permitting and Lane Closure application was developed specifically to provide the above benefits to the Authority, with full intention to integrate with other agency or regional road closure tracking tools (i.e. OpenReach).

If you use a multi-agency tool, who developed it and who maintains it?

The NJTA Operations Traffic Permitting and Lane Closure application is developed and maintained in-house.

Does your road closure tracking tool interface with (receive data from or pass data to) other applications (road closure or other applications) or do users have to enter road closure information in multiple places?

At the moment, the NJTA Operations Traffic Permitting and Lane Closure application is a stand-alone application. However, it is being developed with the expectation of interfacing with other application, both internal and external to NJTA. All users of the NJTA Operations Traffic Permitting and Lane Closure application enter requests and view all lane closure information in one place.

Do you have a standard definition of "road closure" (at least one lane, whole road, closure at least 30 minutes?) used by multiple agencies?

Due to the complexity of the NJTA roadways, there is general definition of a road closure, but exceptions are numerous. The general definition of a road closure at NJTA is any reduction of roadway capacity that directly or indirectly affects the patrons/drivers.

Once the road closure information is entered, who owns the data, who decides how it can be used / disseminated (if agencies access data from other agencies)?

NJTA Operations has full authority over the road closure information. An official, authorized roadway closure report is published both daily and weekly via the Traffic Permitting and Lane Closure application. Users and non-users of the Traffic Permitting and Lane Closure application are alerted to the authorized reports via email (PDF attachment). Users of the Traffic Permitting and Lane Closure application can also view and download authorized reports as needed. It is expected, in the near future, that some portion the Traffic Permitting and Lane Closure application data will be disseminated to the traveling public via existing tools (i.e. OpenReach).

Can the public access the data in the road closure tracking application?

Currently, there is no public access of the Traffic Permitting and Lane Closure application. However, in a future phase of the application, NJTA Operations will provide certain lane closure information publically on their externally accessible website.

How is the data entered - desktop, mobile app?

The NJTA Operations Traffic Permitting and Lane Closure application is a cloud-based application, using modern web browser interfaces (i.e. HTML5) as its primary interface. Field users are able to use the application via tablets and smartphones as well. Most of the input data is requested from the users via pull-downs or radio button selections (free form data entry is minimized) in order to provide data validation on-the-fly. NJTA Operations will typically use a web browser interface to manage the lane closure requests (~850 requests per week) with the user interface geared toward easy record selection and status changes, as well as sorting and filtering capabilities.

Where is the data stored - one agency's server, cloud, other?

The NJTA Operations Traffic Permitting and Lane Closure application is a cloud-based application. All data is stored in the cloud with security, redundancy, fail-over, and high-availability

Answer:

From: / "McVeigh, Kelly"
Subject: / Re: 2014 Request for information about Road Closure Tracking tools

Hi Eileen,

Kindly see below for the NJDOT responses, in red. Feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions.

Hello Ops Academy Colleagues,

- do you have one road closure tracking tool that multiple agencies access / use or do agencies have their own road closure tracking tools that can send data to other tools YES, THERE IS ONE ROAD CLOSURE TRACKING TOOL - OPENREACH. THERE ARE 16 AGENCIES THAT HAVE ACCESS TO THE OPENREACH SYSTEM.

- if you use a multi-agency tool, who developed it and who maintains it THE SYSTEM DEVELOPER IS COVAL SYSTEMS, INC. COVAL MAINTAINS THE SYSTEM IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE TRANSPORTATION OPERATIONS COORDINATING COMMITTEE (TRANSCOM).

- does your road closure tracking tool interface with (receive data from or pass data to) other applications (road closure or other applications) or do users have to enter road closure information in multiple places OPENREACH DOES PASS DATA TO DOWNSTREAM APPLICATIONS SUCH AS 511NJ AND SAFETRIP NJ. IT DOES NOT RECEIVE DATA FROM OUTSIDE APPLICATIONS YET. THAT FUNCTIONALITY IS BEING DEVELOPED.

- do you have a standard definition of "road closure" (at least one lane, whole road, closure at least 30 minutes?) used by multiple agencies OPENREACH HAS A SERIES OF DROPDOWNS TO CREATE A MESSAGE. CURRENTLY, THERE ARE 130 DIFFERENT TYPES OF INCIDENTS T

Kelly McVeigh Assistant Engineer,

Traffic Traffic Operations - South Transportation Systems Management New Jersey DOT

Cell: 609-947-4735

Office: 856-486-6610