TEXAS TIM PROGRAMDavid McDonaldStatewide TIM Coordinator July 24, 2019

TxDOT TIM Teams

Statewide TIM consultant on board in 2016

Statewide TIM Coordinator position filled January 2018

FHWA Paul Jodoin, Jim Austrich and our Texas FHWA representatives Millie Hayes and Steve Ratke have been great assets for our program

Peer Exchanges were the most beneficial

Oregon TIM Conference and Kentucky P2P

Regional teams began in 1990s

Six metro regions holding regular meetings

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TxDOT Traffic Incident Management

Texas TIM Teams1. Austin AIM High2. Dallas3. El Paso4. Fort Worth5. Houston6. San Antonio7. South Tarrant County (Feb 2019)8. NE Tarrant County (Feb 2019)9. Johnson County (Feb 2019)10. Palo Pinto/Parker Counties (Feb 2019)11. Wise County (September 2019)12. Jack County (September 2019)

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Fort Worth TIM Teams

Kickoff in December 2018 after several months without a TIM meeting

Focus was on corridors and specific agencies

Currently have 4 ongoing TIM teams and adding fourth and fifth this year

Have expanded to include rural areas along major corridors

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So Where Did We Start?

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TxDOT After Action Reviews

We created AAR form and instruction document for TIM managers

AAR’s conducted in Austin, Houston, and San Antonio

Lessons Learned:Use ICS/UC. Significant time lost at incident

by fire department Notify proper agency when incident occursCall for resources early on major incidents Identify where your water sources are along

your highways (fire hydrants) Emergency lighting discipline is crucialWear your HVSA (traffic vest) Advanced queue warning is crucial

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Austin Police Department and Abandoned Vehicles

Austin Police and HERO work together to remove abandoned vehicles

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TxDOT Statewide TIM Meeting

Houston Tow & Go

• Jeanette Rash, President, Fast Tow Wrecker Service

• Performance measures• Clearance times• Agency coordination• Legislation• Best practices

TxDOT Statewide TIM Meeting

Fire Truck BlockerIrving, Texas

- Speaker: Captain John Key- Use of decommissioned equipment to protect first responders and active fire units

TxDOT Statewide TIM Meeting

Unmanned Aerial Surveillance (UAS)

Detective Doug Drake - Austin Police Dept.• Used for traffic homicide only• Rigorous FAA approval process• Airport tower coordination• Reduces data capture times

from 3+ hours to under 30 minutes

• Provides 3D rendering• Supported by District Attorney• Produce better quality product for

prosecution

Harris County Medical Examiner

Arrival Time to Crashes in Minutes

Harris County Medical Examiner

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Other Topics Presented

North Central Texas Council of Government (COG) presented on their programs offered for training and “Call for Projects” for their CMAQ funds.

Ron Moore, one of the original contributors to the SHRP2 Training shared suggested updates due to technological and equipment changes

HD Towing company shared challenges often faced for recovery for cost on major incidents

Hazmat company shared some of their specialized equipment they use in clean-up operations, “suggested wording” on reports to assist in recovering cost “roadway damage” vs “hazardous material”.

Austin TxDOT District presented on SWZ and their capabilities and reporting

FHWA Jim Austrich shared information on the number of responders struck thus far and events from Emergency Response Day at ITS America

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TIM Best Practices

Statewide SSP/HERO Working Group

- Bi-monthly Calls began March 20, 2019

- Discuss issues, innovations, best practices

- Involve TxDOT, toll agencies and contractors

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North Texas Toll Authority Roadside Safety Service

Austin HERO Program Fort Worth Courtesy Patrol

TIM Future Plans

Open Roads Agreement

2020/21 Statewide TIM Meeting

Expand SHRP2 Training

Changes to State Crash Report

TIM website

HERO in El Paso & San Antonio fall 2019

Social Media

“Everybody Goes Home”

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TxDOT Traffic Incident Management Teams

Questions? Comments?

Contact information:

David McDonald

David.Mcdonald@txdot.gov

Office: 512-506-5105

Cell: 512-965-2515

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Austin Police Lieutenant Blake Johnson is recognizedby TxDOT’s David McDonald at Austin AIM High TIM meeting, April 18, 2019