Work Zone Mobility and Safety Program
Table of Contents

Guidance on Using Traffic Management Centers for Work Zone Management

CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND

Many Departments of Transportation (DOTs) at the state, county, and local levels operate Traffic Management Centers (TMCs). Typically, a TMC is a center where operators utilize software systems to control field devices (e.g., Dynamic Message Signs (DMS), ramp meters) and to view data and video collected throughout the monitored area. TMCs are not necessarily fixed locations or centers; in some situations the TMC is ‘virtual’, with systems linked through Internet or Intranet communications.

In regards to work zones, TMCs are most commonly thought of during the active work zone phase, when the work zone is in operation and the TMC operators assist by disseminating information and managing the traffic through the work zone. However, there is potential for TMC resources to support all stages of the work zone, from the planning and design phase through active work zone operations and post-operation evaluation. This document presents guidance for DOTs to consider for how TMC resources (staff, data, and tools) can be used to support all stages of a work zone, providing examples of where these resources are used today.

1.2 WORK ZONE STAGES AND NEEDS LIKELY ADDRESSED BY TMC RESOURCES

The lifecycle of a work zone can be represented as four broad stages.

Work Zone Stage 1: Project Development – Planning and Design

This stage is when the planning and design of the construction or maintenance project is performed, and typically occurs before any work zone planning begins. During this stage, the projects are being scoped, designed, and procured. Early estimates of the capacity restrictions (e.g., lane and road closures) are discussed. The needs most likely supported by TMC resources include:

  • Coordinating road work projects as much as possible to avoid simultaneous projects on parallel routes or corridors; and
  • Understanding the impacts that the projects (and resulting work zones) will cause on safety and mobility at a time when the projects are still being planned, and innovative contracting or accelerated construction can be considered.

Work Zone Stage 2: Project Development – Work Zone Management

This stage occurs after the construction or maintenance project has been planned and designed and the focus is on developing the Transportation Management Plan (TMP) to maintain safety and mobility in the work zone throughout the road work project. The needs most likely supported by TMC resources include:

  • Understanding travel demand patterns in order to predict the impacts that work zone-induced capacity restrictions (i.e., the needed traffic re-alignments, lane and/or road closures) will have on traveler safety and mobility; and
  • Developing strategies to mitigate the impacts of the work zone and to include these strategies in the TMP.

Work Zone Stage 3: Active Work Zone Operations

This stage involves the actual work zone operations that establish and maintain the work zone for the project to be performed. The needs most likely supported by TMC resources include:

  • Informing travelers prior to the start of the work zone of the likely impacts and areas impacted, to enable travelers to plan alternate routes and/or change their trip start/end times;
  • Maintaining traveler safety to the extent possible during the work zone; and
  • Promoting driver mobility during the work zone, both by informing travelers of real-time delays and by managing traffic and work zone activities to minimize delays as much as possible.

Work Zone Stage 4: Post-Work Zone Evaluation and Performance Management

This stage includes all post-work zone analyses to understand the actual impacts of the work zone and prepare for future work zones. The needs most likely supported by TMC resources include:

  • Collecting data and information on the travel volumes, speeds/queues/delay, and incidents that occurred during the work zone; and
  • Conducting analyses to compute actual impacts compared with estimated impacts.

1.3 NAVIGATING THIS DOCUMENT AND SEARCHING FOR INFORMATION

Intended Audience

This document is intended to be a resource for staff responsible for all stages of work zone planning and operations, as well as TMC managers and operators.

Intended Use

The intended use of this document is to assist efforts during each stage of a work zone, providing strategies for how TMC resources might be used.

Navigating the Document

This document is not likely to be read ‘cover to cover’, but rather it will serve as a resource used in anticipation of a work zone stage to gather ideas and concepts for benefitting from TMC resources.

Table 1 provides hyperlinks to sections within Chapter 2 of this document, enabling readers to quickly find the information desired. Table 1 presents the four stages of a work zone, together with strategies for utilizing TMC resources during each stage. When a reader clicks on a high-level strategy or sub-strategy in Table 1, they are linked to the section in this document to detailed descriptions and examples of use in practice. It is important to note that while there are many examples of DOTs using TMC resources for all stages of a work zone, one or more specific examples are included for each sub-strategy in this document.

Each TMC is unique and therefore resources available will vary. Chapter 2 describes strategies for using the TMC resources most common to all TMCs in aspects of work zone planning, operation, and evaluation. Chapter 3 includes a detailed table describing many TMC resources is provided to illustrate there are many additional TMC resources that are possible.

Table 1. Work Zone Stages and Strategies for Using Traffic Management Center (TMC) Resources
Work Zone Stages Strategies for Using Traffic Management Center (TMC) Resources Sub-strategies for Using TMC Resources
Stage 1: Project Development – Planning and Design Strategy #1: Using TMC Resources to Coordinate Road Work Projects Strategy 1A: Share access to TMC tools used to record ongoing and planned projects, analyze corridor performance, and predict road user costs with all individuals involved in the road work planning process to support the coordination of road work projects.
Stage 1: Project Development – Planning and Design Strategy #1: Using TMC Resources to Coordinate Road Work Projects Strategy 1B: Involve TMC staff in the planning of road work projects from the onset to enable TMC staff to understand the planned projects and impacts for all areas served by the TMC and therefore contribute to regional mobility planning.
Stage 1: Project Development – Planning and Design Strategy #1: Using TMC Resources to Coordinate Road Work Projects Strategy 1C: Organize annual meetings with TMC staff from neighboring jurisdictions (states, cities, counties) to discuss upcoming road work plans.
Stage 1: Project Development – Planning and Design Strategy #2: Using TMC Resources to Support Preliminary Work Zone Impact Analyses Strategy 2A: Using TMC data together with TMC performance management tools, to conduct preliminary demand-to-capacity calculations for upcoming road work projects
Stage 1: Project Development – Planning and Design Strategy #2: Using TMC Resources to Support Preliminary Work Zone Impact Analyses Strategy 2B: Develop Traffic Operations Plans for large projects before the Transportation Management Plan is developed and before final design, to define the planned use of intelligent transportation system components and maximize the input from the TMC.
Stage 1: Project Development – Planning and Design Strategy #2: Using TMC Resources to Support Preliminary Work Zone Impact Analyses Strategy 2C: Using TMC resources to support innovative contracting or accelerated construction considerations.
Stage 2: Project Development – Work Zone Management Strategy #3: Using TMC Resources to Support Development of the Transportation Management Plan Work Zone Impact Assessment Report Strategy 3A: Using TMC archived volume and speed data to estimate traffic demand, delays, queue lengths and reliability metrics during the upcoming work zone.
Stage 2: Project Development – Work Zone Management Strategy #3: Using TMC Resources to Support Development of the Transportation Management Plan Work Zone Impact Assessment Report Strategy 3B: Using TMC incident logs as a surrogate for crash data to estimate the number of crashes likely to occur during the work zone.
Stage 2: Project Development – Work Zone Management Strategy #3: Using TMC Resources to Support Development of the Transportation Management Plan Work Zone Impact Assessment Report Strategy 3C: Using Road Condition Reporting Systems to understand planned events causing vehicle restrictions or capacity reductions on alternate routes during the work zone.
Stage 2: Project Development – Work Zone Management Strategy #4: Using TMC Resources to Support Development of the Transportation Management Plan Work Zone Impacts Management Strategies Strategy 4A: Using TMC resources to understand the likely intelligent transportation system device outages due to work zones and prepare mitigation strategies to maintain critical field device operations.
Stage 2: Project Development – Work Zone Management Strategy #4: Using TMC Resources to Support Development of the Transportation Management Plan Work Zone Impacts Management Strategies Strategy 4B: Using TMC resources to improve safety and mobility in and around the work zone.
Stage 3: Active Work Zone Operations Strategy #5: Using TMC Resources to Support Pre-Work Zone Information Dissemination Strategy 5A: Using TMC-operated dynamic message signs in the vicinity of the work zone to describe upcoming work zone impacts (e.g., lane or route closures and dates) to travelers prior to the start of the work zone.
Stage 3: Active Work Zone Operations Strategy #5: Using TMC Resources to Support Pre-Work Zone Information Dissemination Strategy 5B: Using TMC-operated traveler information systems and social media accounts to describe upcoming work zones and anticipated impacts to travelers pre-trip.
Stage 3: Active Work Zone Operations Strategy #6: Using TMC Resources to Support Maintenance of Traffic During Active Work Zones – Traveler Safety Strategy 6A: Using TMC real-time traffic data and closed-circuit television cameras to detect stopped traffic and/or queues approaching work zones, and inform travelers upstream of queues using TMC-controlled dynamic message signs.
Stage 3: Active Work Zone Operations Strategy #6: Using TMC Resources to Support Maintenance of Traffic During Active Work Zones – Traveler Safety Strategy 6B: Using TMC-operated closed-circuit television cameras and traffic data to detect or verify incidents in and around work zones to support quicker incident clearance and to alert travelers upstream.
Stage 3: Active Work Zone Operations Strategy #7: Using TMC Resources to Maintenance of Traffic During Active Work Zones – Traveler Mobility Strategy 7A: Using performance measurement and management tools available to the TMC (i.e., vendor products or in-house developed tools) to determine if any modifications to the work zone management approach are needed to maintain traffic mobility.
Stage 3: Active Work Zone Operations Strategy #7: Using TMC Resources to Maintenance of Traffic During Active Work Zones – Traveler Mobility Strategy 7B: Using TMC resources to compute travel times through work zones for dissemination using pre-trip and en-route dissemination tools.
Stage 3: Active Work Zone Operations Strategy #7: Using TMC Resources to Maintenance of Traffic During Active Work Zones – Traveler Mobility Strategy 7C: Using real-time traveler information dissemination systems and tools (including dynamic message signs, Highway Advisory Radio, 511 phone and websites, and social media) to provide content that informs travelers of work zone delays or incidents.
Stage 3: Active Work Zone Operations Strategy #7: Using TMC Resources to Maintenance of Traffic During Active Work Zones – Traveler Mobility Strategy 7D: Using TMC-operated traffic management tools (e.g., lane management systems, variable speed limit systems, and ramp meters) to manage traffic flow in and around the work zone.
Stage 3: Active Work Zone Operations Strategy #7: Using TMC Resources to Maintenance of Traffic During Active Work Zones – Traveler Mobility Strategy 7E: Using Freeway Service Patrols to assist in minimizing impacts of incidents in and around work zones.
Stage 4: Post-Work Zone Evaluation and Performance Management Strategy #8: Using TMC Resources to Support Work Zone Evaluation and Performance Management Strategy 8A: Using TMC archived traffic data, together with performance measurement and management tools available to the TMC (i.e., vendor products or in-house developed tools), to analyze actual delays during the work zone.
Stage 4: Post-Work Zone Evaluation and Performance Management Strategy #8: Using TMC Resources to Support Work Zone Evaluation and Performance Management Strategy 8B: Using TMC incident logs, dynamic message sign message logs, and Road Condition Reporting Systems to supplement traffic data and support performance evaluations.

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