Transcript Maintenance of Traffic (MOT) Concepts

Maintenance of Traffic (MOT)
Concepts
MOT Training for
Incident Responders in Florida
Module 4
Highway Terminology
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Highway Terminology
Standardized names and terms to identify
specific features of any street, road, or highway
where an incident may occur.
– Reduce confusion
– Improve the safety of responders
– Make operations at the scene more efficient
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Shoulders
• The pavement adjacent to travel lanes
• Referenced by:
– Inside or Outside
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Median
• The center of the roadway
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Lane Referencing
• Numbered from outside to inside
– Should not be referenced as the “slow lane” or the
“fast lane”
• Acceleration and deceleration lanes at
interchanges will not be numbered except in the
case of lane drops or adds
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Shoulder
Shoulder
Inside
33
22
1
Outside
Median
Outside
11
22
33
Inside
Shoulder
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6-lane divided highway
Shoulder
Shoulder
Shoulder
3
2
1
4
3
2
Shoulder
1
Inside
Inside
Outside
Lane Drop
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Shoulder
3
2
1
3
2
1
Outside
Deceleration Lane
Upstream and Downstream
• Upstream
– Any area of a highway or any moving traffic that is
approaching the actual incident or activity area
• Downstream
– Area that is past the incident scene
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Downstream
Incident
Upstream
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Incident Definition
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Differences in Definition
• Transportation provider definition
vs.
• Emergency responder definition
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Source: FHWA, Incident Management Performance Measures
Transportation Providers
• Traffic Incident Management Handbook defines an
“incident” as “any non-recurring event that
causes a reduction of roadway capacity or an
abnormal increase in demand”
• The 2000 Highway Capacity Manual defines an
“incident” as “any occurrence on a roadway that
impedes normal traffic flow”
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Emergency Responders
• Most law enforcement agencies and emergency
responders seem to define an “incident” as any
event to which they are dispatched or requires a
“response” or action by them.
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Types of Incidents
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Predictable
• Maintenance Activities
• Construction Activities
• Special Events
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Unpredictable
• Accidents (crashes)
• Stalled vehicles
• Spilled loads
• Weather
• Roadway failures
• Debris falling from trucks
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Incidents
• Create non-recurring traffic congestion
– 60% of all congestion
• Cause secondary crashes
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Highway Standards
• Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)
• State Departments of Transportation
• Local Municipal Governments
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MUTCD
• Chapter 6I of the 2003
MUTCD
• “Control of Traffic
Through Traffic Incident
Management Areas”
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Major Provisions
• Classify incidents by expected duration
• Recommend interagency pre-planning and
management (“unified incident management”)
• “Fluorescent coral” background/black letters
permitted for signs in incident traffic control zones
• Recommendations on use of Emergency Vehicle
Lighting
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Incident Classification
• Level 1 – Minor
–under 30 minutes
• Level 2 – Intermediate
–from 30 minutes to 2 hours
• Level 3 – Major
–over 2 hours
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Source: TIM Handbook & MUTCD 2003 Chapter 6
Temporary Traffic Control Zones
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Temporary Traffic Control Zones
Divided into four areas:
• Advance Warning Area
• Transition Area
• Activity Area
• Termination Area
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Termination
Area
Traffic
Space
Buffer
Space
Work
Area
Buffer
Space
Activity Area
(Hot Zone)
Transition
Area
Shoulder
Taper
Component Parts of
a Temporary Traffic
Control Zone
Advance
Warning Area
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Source: MUTCD 2003 Chapter 6
Advance Warning Area
• First section that informs drivers about the
incident area they are approaching
• Varies from a single sign or warning light on a
vehicle to a series of warning signs
– Examples: cones, flares, or emergency vehicles far in
advance of the actual incident (crash or fire scene)
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Transition Area
• Section of highway where road users are
redirected out of their normal path
– Usually involve strategic use of tapers.
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Taper
• When emergency responders use signs, cones,
flares, or blocking vehicles to direct
approaching traffic from the normal traffic lanes
into a fewer number of open lanes
• Executed within the Transition Area of an
incident scene
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Taper
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Picture: Safe Parking…While Operating In or Near Moving Traffic, Texas FD
Activity Area
• Section of the highway where the work activity
takes place
• Comprises the Work Area, the Traffic Space
and the Buffer Space
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Work Area
• Section of highway closed to road users and set
aside for responders (workers), equipment, and
material
• Usually delineated for road users by channelizing
devices
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Work Area
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Picture: Danger on I-95 – South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com
Traffic Space
• Section of highway in which road users are
routed through the activity area
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Buffer Space
• The area that separates road user flow from the
work space or an unsafe area
• Provides some recovery space for an errant
vehicle
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Incident Responders
Responders arriving at a traffic incident within
15 minutes of arrival on-scene should:
– Estimate the magnitude of the traffic incident
– Predict time duration of the traffic incident
– Estimate vehicle queue length
– Set up the appropriate Temporary Traffic
Control for these estimates
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Highway Safety Principles
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Stopping Sight Distance
• The distance traveled from the time a driver first
detects the need to stop until the vehicle actually stops
Perception
/Reaction
Braking
Total Stopping Sight
Distance
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Perception/Reaction Distance
• Distance traveled by a vehicle from the instant
the driver sees an object to the instant the
brakes are applied
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What is the typical driver’s
perception/reaction time value?
• 0.5 seconds
•
•
•
•
1.0 seconds
1.5 seconds
2.5 seconds
4.0 seconds
• Be prepared for drivers who
do not react . . .
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Braking Distance
• Distance traveled by a vehicle from the instant
the brakes lock up until the vehicle stops
Speed (mph)
Distance (ft)
60
346
65
405
70
470
75
540
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Source: AASHTO Green Book 2001
Total Stopping Sight Distance
(based on 2.5-sec Perception/Reaction Time)
60 Mph
65 Mph
70 Mph
Note: Commercial vehicles require much longer distances.
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Highway Safety Personal
Protective Equipment (PPE) and
Signaling Equipment
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Personal Protective Equipment “PPE”
• Section 6E.02 of the MUTCD
– Requires that workers shall wear bright, highly
visible clothing when working in or near moving
traffic
– Fire/rescue personnel, EMS crews, law enforcement
officials, and even tow truck operators
• PPE – General requirements Standard 29 CFR
1910.132 (OSHA)
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ANSI/ISEA Public Safety Vest
Requirements
Background Material
Minimum 450 in2
Retroreflective/CombinedPerformance Material
Minimum Width 1.97 in
Minimum Area 201 in2
Vest
Class II
The Vest shall have contiguous areas
of retroreflective or combinedperformance material encircling the
torso – placed in a manner to
provide 3600 visibility
ANSI 207-2006 Standard
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Source: Emergency Responder Safety Institute
Highway Safety Vests
Vest
Class III
• All incident responders shall comply with this
provision no later than November 24, 2008.
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Source: Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 226 / Rules and Regulations Part 634 – Worker Visibility Sec. 634.4
Question?
Visibility of Pedestrian at Night
• At night – how far away can a driver see you?
Low Beams and Dark Clothing
Average Detection Distance
Low Beams and White Clothing
Low Beams and
ANSI Vest II or III
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Source: ANSI/ISEA 107-1999 MADE EASY. A Quick Reference to High-Visibility Safety Apparel
Traffic Control Devices
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Traffic Control Devices
• To promote highway safety by providing for the
orderly and predictable movement of all traffic
and to provide guidance and warning as needed
• Examples:
–
–
–
–
Signs
Channelizing devices
Lighting devices
Shadow vehicles
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Warning Signs
• Warning signs are used
to give notice of an
unexpected condition
or a condition that
may be potentially
hazardous to traffic.
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Picture: KTC, Emergency Traffic Control for Responders-Training
Examples of TIM Area Signs
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Source: MUTCD 2003 Chapter 6 Figure 6I-1
Warning Signs - Placement
• Right- or left-hand side of roadway
• As near to the edge of the road as possible, but
no closer than 2 feet
• Right angles, facing traffic
• No obstructions
• In advance of hills and curves
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Incorrect Placement
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Source: Emergency Traffic Accommodation – A Guide for First Responders
Correct Placement
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Source: Emergency Traffic Accommodation – A Guide for First Responders
Incorrect
Placement
Correct
Placement
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Source: Emergency Traffic Accommodation – A Guide for First Responders
Channelizing Devices
• Their function is to warn road users of
conditions created by work activities in or near
the roadway and to guide road users
• Channelizing devices include:
–
–
–
–
–
–
cones
tubular markers
vertical panels
drums
barricades
temporary raised islands
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Traffic Control Devices
• Florida Design Standard, Series 600 requirements:
– FDOT approved number shall be engraved on the
device
– Traffic control devices must be on the Qualified
Product List
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Cones
• Cones shall be
predominantly orange
• Shall be made of a
material that can be
struck without causing
damage to the
impacting vehicle
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Cones
• One solution to carrying
28-inch traffic cones within
the limited storage space on
most responders vehicles is
the “collapsible” cones.
• Four 28-inch tall Pop-UpR
cones only occupy a 12inch-high stack when
stored.
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Picture: Safe Parking…While Operating In or Near Moving Traffic, Texas FD
Flares
• Work well at night to warn motorists of lane
changes and merges due to the bright red light
they emit as they burn
• The visibility of traffic cones can be increased
under night conditions by deploying flares and
cones together
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Flares
When flares are placed near a traffic
cone, the light given off by the flare
not only warns upstream traffic
but illuminates the cone as well
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Flashlights
Specially-designed orange cones that fit over the
end of a flashlight to improve their usefulness
for traffic control.
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Emergency-Vehicle Light
• Essential in the initial stages of a traffic
incident
• Provide safety to emergency responders and
persons involved in the traffic incident, as well
as road users approaching the traffic incident
• Example:
– high-intensity rotating, flashing, oscillating or strobe
lights
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Emergency-Vehicle Light
• In multi-lane freeways
– Recommended to “shed” or turn off all forwardfacing emergency lighting that affect traffic in the
oncoming lanes
– To reduce rubbernecking and prevents secondary
crashes
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Minimize Lights
• Avoid glare to motorists
• Turn off unnecessary lights
– Emergency vehicle lighting:
• Provides warning only and provides no effective traffic
control
• Can be confusing and distracting to drivers
• Use amber instead of red
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INCORRECT
CORRECT
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Picture: USFA, Traffic Incident Management System
Arrow Panels
• Provide additional warning and directional
information to assist in merging and controlling
road users through or around a Temporary
Traffic Control zone
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Arrow Panels
• Nighttime use
– When advance warning arrow panels are used, the
intensity of the flasher shall be reduced
• Location
– For lane closures on multi-lane roadways, an arrow
panel should be located on the shoulder at the
beginning of the taper
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Pictures: FDOT Road Rangers Basic Training
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Source: MUTCD 2003 Chapter 6 Figure 6I-1
Shadow Vehicles
• Shadow Vehicles – Trucks or trailers that are
used to protect workers or work equipment
from errant vehicles
• Heavy Vehicle – 33,000 GVWR or greater,
loaded at least 20,000 pounds (tanker truck)
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Shadow Vehicle
• Once parked, it becomes a traffic control device
(TCD) placed as an element of the TCZ using
the MUTCD as a guide. It is:
– spotted parallel with traffic 100 to 250 ft
upstream from the work area depending upon
the speed limit, with wheels cut toward the
shoulder
– not involved in incident mitigation efforts and not
occupied by people!!!
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Work Area
(Incident Area)
Shadow
Vehicle
If Available
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END
Question or Comments
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