Module 1 1Road Ranger / TMC Operator Joint Training

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Road Ranger Program

History / Contract

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Why are you here?

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• Provide information to ensure your safety

• Define roles and responsibilities

• Maintain the integrity of the Department

• Keeping the reputation of your contractor intact

• Bring together Road Rangers and TMC Operators

Course ObjectiveCourse Objective

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Road Ranger MissionRoad Ranger Mission

Provide free highway assistance services during incidents to reduce delay and improve safety for the motoring public and responders.

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TMC MissionTMC Mission

Lead an integrated operation to proactively monitor and control the surface transportation

system within Broward and Palm Beach Counties

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BenefitsBenefits

• Reduce crashes

• Reduce incident duration by assisting the Florida Highway Patrol

• Assist disabled motorists

• Remove road debris

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StatisticsStatistics

• 298,776 disabled vehicles assisted statewide in 2005

– 74,691 in District 4

– average 205 per day

• Drop in FHP assists in most areas

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Statewide Uniformity - ClothingStatewide Uniformity - Clothing

All drivers must wear:• Uniforms – white shirts with dark blue slacks• Picture IDs

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Statewide Uniformity -VehiclesStatewide Uniformity -Vehicles

• Logo design established mid 2001

• White truck color decided by FDOT Executive Committee

• Various vehicle types

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Road Rangers Vehicle-District 4Road Rangers Vehicle-District 4

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CONTRACT

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Project Manager – District 4Project Manager – District 4

Gaetano Francese

Traffic Operations

Phone: 954-777-4366

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FDOT District 4 OfficeFDOT District 4 Office

3400 West Commercial Boulevard

Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33309

Phone: 954-486-1400

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SunGuide TMCSunGuide TMC

2300 West Commercial Boulevard

Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33309

Phone: 954-847-2785

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Palm Beach Interim Traffic Palm Beach Interim Traffic Management System (ITMS)Management System (ITMS)

2200 Centrepark West Drive

West Palm Beach, FL 33409

561-682-3350

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CONTRACT OVERVIEWCONTRACT OVERVIEW

• General Requirements

• Road Ranger Duties & Responsibilities

• Road Ranger Vehicle Operator Requirements

• Automatic Vehicle Location System (AVL)

• Road Ranger Activity Logs

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OBJECTIVEOBJECTIVE

To increase safety, reduce delays, and provide assistance to motorists

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General Contract RequirementsGeneral Contract Requirements

Road Ranger vehicles shall operate in designated patrol sectors (beats) as determined by FDOT which may

vary based on need

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General Contract RequirementsGeneral Contract Requirements

• Vehicle operators shall patrol respective beats in continuous loops

• Each beat shall have specific turnaround locations and may have designated drop off areas

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BROWARD BEATSBROWARD BEATS

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BROWARD BEATS BROWARD BEATS

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PALM BEACH BEATSPALM BEACH BEATS

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General Contract RequirementsGeneral Contract Requirements

• Road Ranger vehicles shall not travel in HOV lanes and shoulders unless: - responding to a specific emergency request - it allows a patrol vehicle to reach the destination faster

- at the direction of law enforcement

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General Contract RequirementsGeneral Contract Requirements

• Instances in which a Road Ranger vehicle may leave a patrol beat:

- At end of shift

- For repairs or to replenish supplies (backup vehicle put into service)

- To fuel up at nearest facility (not more than two miles from beat)

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General Contract RequirementsGeneral Contract Requirements• Other instances in which a Road Ranger

vehicle may leave a patrol beat: – In response to request from law

enforcement or TMC– Rest period (15 min. break & 30 min. lunch

and dinner – not during peak hrs)– To change operators – To provide services when requested near end

of shift (contractor paid for the extended period)

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General Contract RequirementsGeneral Contract Requirements

Most importantly…

Road Rangers should never leave the patrol beat without notifying the TMC

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General Contract RequirementsGeneral Contract Requirements

Road Ranger vehicles shall be kept neat, clean and maintained in

conformance with Motor Vehicle Code and applicable Florida Statutes

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General Contract RequirementsGeneral Contract Requirements

• Inspection of Road Ranger vehicles by FDOT- Road Ranger vehicles shall be subject to spot inspections periodically by FDOT/SIRV Operator- Unsafe, poorly maintained or improperly equipped vehicles shall be removed from service & replaced

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General Contract RequirementsGeneral Contract Requirements

• FHP Rotation Tow System

- If motorist does not request a specific towing service, the Road Ranger shall allow the motorist to contact FHP to request rotation tow service

– Road Ranger shall notify TMC

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Road Ranger Duties & Road Ranger Duties & ResponsibilitiesResponsibilities

• Patrol Duties

• Clearing, Clean-up & Communications

• Assistance and Advice

• Disabled/Abandoned Vehicles

• Crashes

• Assisting Law Enforcement

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Road Ranger Duties & Road Ranger Duties & ResponsibilitiesResponsibilities

• Moving Disabled Vehicles from Traffic Lanes

• Transporting People

• Animals

• FDOT Comment Cards

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Patrol DutiesPatrol Duties• Continuously patrol beats seeking:

- disabled vehicles- stranded motorists- debris on the roadway- spilled loads- crashes- obstructions to traffic- other potential hazards

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Clearing, Clean-up & Clearing, Clean-up & CommunicationCommunication

• Clear lanes of all disabled vehicles, debris, spilled loads, etc.

• Road Ranger is responsible for removing small non-hazardous debris from roadway and shoulder area and place in areas designated by FDOT

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Clearing, Clean-up & Clearing, Clean-up & CommunicationCommunication

Call the TMC for all of the following:

Motorist assists, abandoned vehicles, debris pickup, lane blocks, crashes, emergencies, law enforcement situations, rotation tow, verified fires, large spills, large debris, damage to infrastructure

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Assistance and AdviceAssistance and Advice

• Road Rangers shall provide prompt, courteous assistance to motorists as follows:

- Move disabled vehicles from travel lane

- Change flat tires

- Provide jump starts

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Assistance and AdviceAssistance and Advice

- Provide fuel, water or oil when necessary

- Assist motorists with mechanical problems and perform minor repairs where feasible and can be done in less than 15 minutes

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Assistance and AdviceAssistance and Advice• Contractor or Road Ranger shall NOT

charge any fees, accept any gratuities, recommend towing service, repair or body shops

Violation of this requirement shall constitute grounds for immediate termination of employee and/or cancellation of contract

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Assistance and AdviceAssistance and Advice• Motorists shall be advised prior to

providing service that this service is being provided free of charge as a courtesy of FDOT

• All costs for further service by others, towing or transportation, must be paid by motorist

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Assistance and AdviceAssistance and Advice

• If minor repairs are not feasible or don’t solve problem, motorist shall be allowed up to two (2) cell phone calls to make other arrangements

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Disabled/Abandoned VehiclesDisabled/Abandoned Vehicles• Disabled vehicles shall be removed

from travel lanes by moving them to the shoulder

• After clearing disabled vehicle, Road Ranger shall attempt to determine why vehicle is disabled and attempt minor repairs

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Disabled/Abandoned VehiclesDisabled/Abandoned Vehicles• If motorist refuses to allow vehicle to be

moved from travel lane Road Ranger shall contact TMC for assistance and remain on-scene until FHP arrives– Motorist should be provided a copy of the

“Move It” card

• If motorist still refuses to move the vehicle Road Ranger shall not move it until directed by FHP

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Disabled/Abandoned VehiclesDisabled/Abandoned Vehicles

• When abandoned vehicle is observed, Road Ranger shall contact TMC to advise of vehicle’s location, make, color, body type, license plate number and if it’s impeding traffic

• Check the inside of the vehicle and report anything suspicious or unusual to the TMC

• Use grease pen to mark rear window with Road Ranger Truck number and date

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Disabled/Abandoned VehiclesDisabled/Abandoned Vehicles

• If abandoned vehicle is impeding traffic or is a safety hazard, Road Ranger shall protect area by setting cones, flares and using arrow board and flashing lights

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CrashesCrashes• Road Ranger shall call TMC and remain at

scene until appropriate assistance arrives

• Road Ranger shall protect scene using flares, cones and arrow board/flashing lights and assist in traffic control

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Assisting Law EnforcementAssisting Law Enforcement

• Road Ranger shall assist law enforcement when and as requested

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Transporting PeopleTransporting People

• Road Ranger should make every effort to not leave disabled motorists stranded

• If assistance can not be obtained, motorist and passengers should be transported to nearest safe haven

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Transporting PeopleTransporting People• When transporting passengers, Road

Ranger shall keep log of names, destination, time and mileage at time of departure and notify TMC

• Road Ranger shall ensure passengers wear seat belts

• Road Ranger shall ensure that adult is responsible for installing child seat in Road Ranger vehicle

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AnimalsAnimals

• Dead animals shall be removed from roadway and paved shoulders

• For large animals, notify TMC

• For injured animals or live stock in roadway notify TMC

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FDOT Comment CardsFDOT Comment Cards

• Road Rangers shall give FDOT Comment Cards to every motorist receiving assistance

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Road Ranger Operator Road Ranger Operator RequirementsRequirements

• Licensed in accordance with Florida Motor Vehicle Code with Class B License

• Must be minimum 18 years of age

• Have safe driving record

• No criminal record. A criminal history check shall be conducted by FDLE for each Road Ranger Operator

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Road Ranger Operator Road Ranger Operator RequirementsRequirements

• Operators, supervisors and company officials shall be subject to driving record, criminal background check

• Operators shall be competent in tasks of tow truck operations and provide safe, proper discharge of their responsibilities

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Road Ranger Operator Road Ranger Operator RequirementsRequirements

• Operators shall conduct themselves in a manner that will reflect favorably on FDOT

• Operators shall wear clean uniforms consisting of white shirts and dark pants

• Operators shall be well groomed

• Wear visible name plates and no company patches or logos

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Road Ranger Operator Road Ranger Operator RequirementsRequirements

• Be courteous at all times

• Inspect assigned vehicle at beginning of each shift

• Keep all communication equipment on and volume up

• Remain on assigned beat departing only as described in this contract

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Road Ranger Operator Road Ranger Operator RequirementsRequirements

• Obey all traffic laws

• Exercise caution and safety at all times

• Use caution when moving disabled vehicles

• Do Not accept payment for any type of service rendered

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Road Ranger Operator Road Ranger Operator RequirementsRequirements

• Do Not carry firearms or other weapons either on their person or in Road Ranger vehicle

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Road Ranger Operator Road Ranger Operator RequirementsRequirements

• Use flashing lights and arrow board in conformance with Florida Motor Vehicle Code and only in following circumstances:

- when merging or exiting from traffic lanes

- to warn traffic when performing services

- wear FDOT approved safety vest at all times while outside Road Ranger vehicle

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Automatic Vehicle Location SystemAutomatic Vehicle Location System

• FDOT has installed an AVL system on all Road Ranger vehicles

• Operators and supervisors shall complete training in AVL operations

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Automatic Vehicle Location SystemAutomatic Vehicle Location System• Any tampering, removing, disengaging or

otherwise disabling of AVL components shall result in termination of employee and/or contract

• AVL hardware/software shall remain the property of FDOT

• FDOT alone reserves the right to access the system’s data and use the information obtained through the AVL system

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Road Ranger Activity LogsRoad Ranger Activity Logs

• Road Rangers shall maintain Activity Logs approved by FDOT which shall be completed daily and made available to the FDOT Project Manager at all times

• If not done, employee will be suspended or fined

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Road Ranger Activity LogsRoad Ranger Activity Logs

• Activity Logs shall reflect:

- Date of log entry

- Time when operator was advised of a given incident

- Time of arrival at incident

- Time of departure from incident

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Road Ranger Activity LogsRoad Ranger Activity Logs• Nature of each incident such as debris

removal, flat tire, water, gas

• Whether incident was detected by normal patrol activity or by dispatch call

• Incident location, lanes in which incident was located and direction of travel

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Road Ranger Activity LogsRoad Ranger Activity Logs• Vehicle make, model body type and

license plate number

• Road Ranger name, vehicle number and beat

• Road Ranger vehicle odometer reading at beginning and end of each shift

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And last but not least…

Every event on the activity log must have a confirmation number!

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TMC Event Entry FormTMC Event Entry Form

• All information received from Road Rangers shall be entered into the telephone log and SMART Event form

• TMC Operators must request information not received

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Questions?Questions?