Gateway Guide Transportation Management Center St. Louis District Mobility December 2014 ZONING IN TMS Work Zones ♦ DEC 2013: 211 ♦ DEC 2014: 205 Work Zone breakdown: ♦ Major: 0–0 % ♦ Moderate: 0–0% ♦ Minor: 163 –100% Work zone crashes: 3 Freeway Mobility Declined compared to previous month Freeway Average 24 hour Volumes Dec 2013 Dec 2014: Up 4.7% 2013 2014: Up 2.6% Major Incidents Nov 2014: 4 Dec 2014: 10 2013 Avg. 6.3 2014 Avg. 5.9 Average Incident Duration NOV DEC Lane Clearance: 27:32 31:34 Incident Clearance: 28:23 32:29 (Min: sec) Major Impact Work Zones November 0 December 0 Moderate Impact Work Zones November 2 December 0 Year to Year Mobility Comparison: DEC 2013 DEC 2014 Major impact WZ: Improved Moderate impact WZ: Improved Major incidents: Increased Freeway Mobility: Improved Trending UP MoDOT’s Incident Management Coordinator, Owen hasson, provides Traffic Incident Management (TIM) training to emergency responders from DOT, Police, Fire, EMS, Public Works and Tow. GuidePost Freeway mobility declined with heavy volumes slowing travel on stretches of I-64 / I-70 / I-270 December Freeway volumes increased by 4.7% from 2013 to 2014 and annual volumes increased 2.6% from 2013 to 2014 Arterial Peak period Travel flowed well except for slowing along routes at interstate interchanges in both peaks with overall slower PM travel 379 emergency responders were trained on Safe, Quick Incident Lane clearance during 16 Traffic Incident Management classes throughout 2014 Winter Weather, a wrong-way driver and a pedestrian strike among the 10 Major incidents Mobility Snapshot
Transcript
Gateway Guide
Transportation Management Center
St. Louis District Mobility
December 2014
ZONING IN
TMS Work Zones
♦ DEC 2013: 211
♦ DEC 2014: 205
Work Zone breakdown:
♦ Major: 0–0 %
♦ Moderate: 0–0%
♦ Minor: 163 –100%
Work zone crashes: 3
Freeway Mobility
Declined compared to previous month
Freeway Average 24 hour Volumes
Dec 2013 Dec 2014: Up 4.7%
2013 2014: Up 2.6%
Major Incidents
Nov 2014: 4 Dec 2014: 10
2013 Avg. 6.3 2014 Avg. 5.9
Average Incident Duration NOV DEC
Lane Clearance: 27:32 31:34
Incident Clearance: 28:23 32:29
(Min: sec)
Major Impact Work Zones
November 0 December 0
Moderate Impact Work Zones
November 2 December 0
Year to Year Mobility Comparison:
DEC 2013 DEC 2014
Major impact WZ: Improved
Moderate impact WZ: Improved
Major incidents: Increased
Freeway Mobility: Improved
Trending UP
MoDOT’s Incident Management Coordinator,
Owen hasson, provides Traffic Incident
Management (TIM) training to emergency
responders from DOT, Police, Fire, EMS,
Public Works and Tow.
GuidePost
Freeway mobility declined with
heavy volumes slowing travel on
stretches of I-64 / I-70 / I-270
December Freeway volumes
increased by 4.7% from 2013 to
2014 and annual volumes
increased 2.6% from 2013 to
2014
Arterial Peak period Travel
flowed well except for slowing
along routes at interstate
interchanges in both peaks with
overall slower PM travel
379 emergency responders were
trained on Safe, Quick Incident
Lane clearance during 16 Traffic
Incident Management classes
throughout 2014
Winter Weather, a wrong-way
driver and a pedestrian strike
among the 10 Major incidents
Mobility Snapshot
Work Zones
2
*Impact Levels described in Data Key
SL Mobility Rating:
♦ Nov 2014: 97%
♦ Dec 2014: 96%
♦ Goal: 91%
SL Visibility levels:
♦ Nov 2014: 91%
♦ Dec 2014: 95%
♦ Goal: 91%
Major Impact (15 Minutes or Above Additional Travel Time
Action: Motorist Assist responded along with MSHP, emergency responders and Miners Towing. The TMC messaged for the event using roadside messaging and alerts advising motorists of the closure. The EOC, Community Relations and Motor carriers were notified.
Result: A tractor trailer jackknifed and crashed into the guard rail damaging 12 posts and 40 foot of guardrail before overturning and blocking all eastbound lanes. I-44 was shut down and traffic was diverted off at exit 256 onto Old Route 66. Traffic queued for 3 miles during this event heavily impacting the am rush. The roadway was treated with salt before the decision was made to open up lanes one and two, but keep lane three closed at the accident scene.
At 7:45 am the engineer on duty was notified of the incident and began arterial mitigation based on the description from on-site. Signals were adjusted at the ramp from Eastbound I-44 to West Osage Street. Camera views of West Osage Street Business Loop I-44(BL I-44), which runs parallel with I-44, indicated BL I-44 was congested due to traffic diverting away from I-44.
With no pre-programmed diversion plan available, some quick adjustments to the 3-signal BL I-44 system (Lamar Parkway, Viaduct and Payne) were made in an attempt to relieve some of the congestion through Pacific until motorists could get back onto Eastbound I-44 at Allenton/Six Flags.
The timing plan was changed to a plan with a cycle length of 120 seconds. Further adjustments were also made to help the off-ramp diverting traffic. At Payne and Routes FF-OO the signals were put to “free” operation and max time for mainline was locked in and increased to help flush as many vehicles eastward.
The adjustments helped improve the flow of traffic on BL I-44 to get through the city limits of Pacific. The additional time provided for the ramp at Lamar intersection allowed a few more vehicles to get off the interstate each cycle. With such a large volume of traffic being diverted it was still over capacity and adjustments never fully relieved the backup on Eastbound I-44. Eastbound I-44 was reopened at 8:30 am.
Congestion on Osage was clear by 8:50 am and signals were put back to normal operation by 9:00 am.
Event Duration: 5 hours 44 minutes
Eastbound I-44 before Six
Flags Road
Left
Shoulder
Lane 1 Lane 2 Lane 3 Right
Shoulder
Closed Hours/Minutes 4:26 4:37 3:37 4:16 4:19
Incident Management
7
Major Impact Traffic Incidents and Mitigation 12/1/2014 (Monday)
Time: 6:29 am – 9:08 am ***Weather Related***
Location: St. Louis County – Westbound I-70 at Lucas and Hunt Road
Action: MoDOT Emergency Responders, St. John Police, and a tow responded to the event. TMC posted alerts and advanced warning messages advising motorists of closure to slow down for icy conditions.
Result: Crash closed lanes 1 and 2 with responders closing lane 3. Time of day, icy conditions and police not wanting to move vehicles to shoulder despite no injuries contributed to lengthy clearance time. The crash caused a 3 mile queue at onset that had grown to an 8 mile backup when lanes were opened. Traffic did not return to normal flow until 9:46 am (38 minutes after lanes cleared).
Action: MoDOT Emergency Responders, MSHP, St. Louis City Fire, and a tow responded to the event. TMC posted advance warning messages advising motorists of closure and to slow down for icy conditions.
Result: Overturned fuel tanker loaded with approximately 2,000 gallons of gasoline that had to be recovered. Fuel was transferred to a secondary tanker before tow could upright the vehicle. No fuel was spilled and the vehicle was removed from the roadway with no additional hazards. Traffic was diverted off of the interstate at Bellefontaine Road and Route 367.
Event Duration: 4 hours 11 minutes
Eastbound I-270 at
Riverview Drive
Lane 1 Lane 2 Right
Shoulder
Closed Hours/Minutes 4:16 1:58 0:01
Incident Management
9
Major Impact Traffic Incidents and Mitigation
12/13/2014 (Saturday)
Time: 7:01 am – 5:53 pm
Location: Jefferson County – Northbound I-55 before Route 141
Action: MoDOT Emergency Responders, MoDOT Bridge Maintenance, Arnold Police, and multiple tows responded to the event. TMC posted advance warning messages advising motorists of closure.
Result: Crash occurred on Northbound I-55 at the Church Street overpass (just south of Route 141). Driver lost control, left the roadway on the right side, went up the embankment striking the overpass, sheering the top from the trailer and coming to rest in the grassy area on the right of the roadway. Although the incident was of considerable length, the lanes were only blocked sporadically to allow for adjustments of the tow trucks. Five tow trucks (2 heavy-duty / 3 light-duty), were used to move/load the tractor and trailer. Once the vehicle was loaded onto a flatbed it was determined that it was too heavy to move. The trailer was then offloaded. Because the overpass was struck at a high rate of speed, bridge maintenance was called out to inspect. No damage was found. Traffic continued to move without queuing.
Event Duration: 10 hours 52 minutes
Northbound I-55
before Route 141
Left
Shoulder
Lane 1
Lane 2 Lane 3 Lane 4 Lane 5 Right
Exit
Right
Shoulder
Closed
Hours/Minutes
0:00
0:00
0:00
0:00
0:10
5:22
5:18
10:42
Incident Management
10
Major Impact Traffic Incidents and Mitigation
12/16/2014 (Tuesday)
Time: 5:54 am – 10:15 am ***Fatal***
Location: Franklin County – Eastbound I-44 past Route 47
Action: MoDOT Emergency Responders and Maintenance, MSHP, Fire, EMS and Tow responded. The TMC posted web alert messages warning motorists of closure and notified EOC, Motor Carriers, Community Relations and MoDOT Incident Management Coordinator.
Result: A pedestrian was fatally struck by a vehicle. All lanes of Eastbound I-44 were closed for investigation. Traffic was diverted at the off ramp east of St. Clair, and advised to use Route 47 North to US 50 East. There was a 3 mile queue at onset that eased to 1 mile after 25 minutes. Maintenance responded to assist with traffic control and provided updated reports to the TMC as this event was not viewable by camera.
Event Duration: 4 hours 21 minutes
Eastbound I-44 past
Route 47
Left
Shoulder
Lane 1 Lane 2 Right
Shoulder
Closed Hours/Minutes 4:08 4:08 4:20 4:20
Incident Management
11
Major Impact Traffic Incidents and Mitigation
12/19/2014 (Friday)
Time: 1:56 am – 6:39 am ***Fatal***
Location: St. Louis County – Westbound I-270 at Lindbergh Boulevard
Action: MoDOT Emergency Responders and Maintenance, MSHP, Hazelwood Police, Fire and EMS, St. Louis County Medical examiner and Bolin Tow responded. The TMC posted web alert messages warning motorists of closure and notified Area Engineer, EOC, Motor Carriers, Community Relations and MoDOT Incident Management Coordinator.
Result: A car attempted to enter the traffic lanes after being stopped on the right shoulder and pulled into the path of a tractor trailer. The car was pinned against the median wall resulting in the driver being fatally injured. The tractor trailer driver was transported to the hospital with injuries. All lanes were closed for extrication and crash reconstruction with a queue of 2 miles. Maintenance was called in and provided traffic control. Traffic was diverted off I-270 at the US 67 slip ramp. No queue except during pickup of traffic control as rush hour began.
Event Duration: 4 hours 42 minutes
Westbound I-270 at
Lindbergh Boulevard
Lane 1 Lane 2 Lane 3 Right
Shoulder
Closed Hours/Minutes 4:08 4:08 4:08 4:39
Incident Management
12
Major Impact Traffic Incidents and Mitigation
12/21/2014 (Sunday)
Time: 4:15 am – 8:06 am ***Fatal***
Location: St. Louis City – Northbound I-55 at Park Avenue
Action: MoDOT Emergency Responders and Maintenance, St. Louis City Police, Fire, EMS, Coroner and Tow responded. The TMC posted web alert messages warning motorists of closure and notified EOC, Motor Carriers, Community Relations and MoDOT Incident Management Coordinator.
Result: A wrong-way driver driving south in the Northbound I-55 lanes struck a northbound vehicle resulting in a double fatality. All northbound lanes were closed for reconstruction. Driver was believed to have entered the interstate from Walnut Street. Traffic control was handled by MoDOT maintenance and traffic was forced off I-55 at Park Avenue and advised to seek alternate route into downtown from I-44 and I-55. There was a 2 minute queue when all lanes were opened.
Action: MoDOT Emergency Responders and Maintenance, St. Louis City Police, Fire, EMS and Tow responded. The TMC posted web alert messages warning motorists of closure and notified EOC, Motor Carriers, Community Relations and MoDOT Incident Management Coordinator.
Result: Crash closed two left lanes and knocked over a barrier wall. Three people were transported for injuries. Traffic was able to move around the incident with no queue. Maintenance responded with a boom truck to lift and reset the barrier wall.
Action: MoDOT Emergency Responders, MSHP, Berkeley Police, Fire, EMS St. Louis County Medical Examiner, and A2B Towing responded. The TMC posted web alert messages warning motorists of closure and to seek alternate route. MoDOT Incident Management Coordinator was notified.
Result: Crash involved a van that traveled off the left side of the roadway, struck a ditch and overturned. Driver was ejected from vehicle resulting in a single fatality. No reconstruction took place. The exit opened as soon as recovery was complete. No queue observed. Traffic was diverted east on I-70 and able to turn around on Natural Bridge Road to go west on I-70.
Event Duration: 2 hours 37 minutes
Southbound I-170 to
Westbound I-70
Left Exit Lane 1 Right Exit
Closed Hours/Minutes 2:37 2:37 2:37
Incident Management
15
Major Impact Traffic Incidents and Mitigation
12/29/2014 (Monday)
Time: 8:48 pm – 12:11 am ***Fatal***
Location: St. Louis County – Westbound I-70 at Cypress Road
Action: MoDOT Emergency Responders, Bridgeton, Cool Valley and Normandy Police, Northeast Fire and Ambulance, Pattonville Fire, St. Louis County Medical Examiner and Tow responded. The TMC posted web alert messages warning motorists of closure and to seek alternate route. TMC notified EOC, Motor Carriers, Community Relations and MoDOT Incident Management Coordinator.
Result: Pedestrian fatally struck while trying to cross Westbound I-70 at Cypress Road. All westbound lanes and one eastbound lane were closed during the investigation. Motorist Assist helped to provide traffic control. The eastbound closure lasted just over an hour. There was a half mile queue from the onset eventually backing up to Airflight Road as traffic exited in a single file off I-70 at Natural Bridge Road. There was no queue when the incident terminated.
AM Peak Changes in December 2014 Mobility Declined
Mobility Remained Low
*All weekdays are included in speed index calculation
B
C A D
Freeway Management
17
12
3
6
9
MO 30/
Gravois Rd.
Freeway Management
18
12
3
6
9
W/O Timberlake
Manor
12
3
6
9
W/O
McCausland
Freeway Management
19
PM Peak Changes in November 2014
Mobility Remained Low
*All weekdays are included in speed index calculation
A
A
B
Freeway Management
20
12
3
6
9
Lindbergh Blvd.
12
3
6
9
Maryville
Centre
Freeway Management
21
12
3
6
9
W/O US 40-61
W/O Hampton
Freeway Management
22
Readings from every detector on the interstates in the St. Louis District are used for this comparison. An average 24 hour volume value is determined for each route and direction per month. The average values are then combined for a total 24 hour volume. The values presented represent the number of vehicles on the district’s interstates on the average weekday for each month.
Arterial Management
23
Arterial Management
24
Arterial Management
25
Arterial Mitigation
12/8/14 Monday
Location: Eastbound I-44 at Jefferson
Event: Multiple vehicle crash resulted in a full closure of the intestate.
Time: 4:20 pm to 5:20 pm Total Time: 1 hour
Action: A multiple vehicle crash was observed around 4:00 pm on Eastbound I-44 at the Jefferson Avenue overpass. The I-44 Eastbound traffic was using the left shoulder to bypass it for about 30 minutes after the crash, until the Fire Department and the Police closed the eastbound direction completely to work on the incident.
This resulted in a backup on Eastbound I-44 stretching past Vandeventer/Kingshighway. The Eastbound I-44 at Jefferson ramp signal was set to run the AM peak to flush the “down-and-over” traffic trying to bypass the closure and get back on Eastbound I-44.
Result: This noticeably helped drivers that were able to make it to the off-ramp at Jefferson. Looking at the Eastbound I-44 ramp signal at Grand, many drivers were trying to get off there. No adjustments were made however, due to the peak plan in effect and tight signal spacing. Around 5:30 pm one lane was open and the traffic started to move very slowly again. By about 5:45 pm the Grand Eastbound on-ramp was noticed to be clearing up.
Arterial Management
26
ITS Devices On Line – 2014 4th Quarter
100% Target
Efforts highlighted in this report such as data collection, incident management by the TMC, and DMS messaging all
depend on a reliable communication network throughout the District in order to use CCTV cameras, data sensors, and
DMS’s.
Each workday, a scan of the network is undertaken in order to determine how many devices are communicating back
to the TMC. The chart above and associated milestones show the trends of those scans and the effects certain events
have on the “health” of the network and in turn the ability to utilize ITS devices.
October 16: Single radio failure on Route 30
December 1: Failures over long Thanksgiving weekend – quickly repaired in first 2 days
December 15: Fiber damage on Route 180 and near Boone Bridge, plus outage on Route 100, resulted in 180
devices down
4000
4200
4400
4600
4800
5000
5200
5400
10
/1
10
/8
10
/15
10
/22
10
/29
11
/5
11
/12
11
/19
11
/26
12
/3
12
/10
12
/17
12
/24
12
/31
Nu
mb
er
of
De
vice
s R
esp
on
sdin
g
Date
Data Key
27
Level of Impact Additional Travel
Time Expected Mitigation Actions
Major (Red)
IAR Event
SEVERE DISTRESS
PRESENT
Return of roadway to free flow traffic is
Priority #1
15 minutes or above
TMC and field personnel
take all steps possible up to
and including removal of
lane closure to achieve free
flow threshold
Immediate Action Required
Supervisory mitigation
assistance is required using
the St. Louis District Work
Zone Resolution Ladder as
a tool to restore free flow
traffic threshold
Moderate (Yellow)
IAR Event
CAUTIONARY STAGE:
Action required by Field/ TMC to
prevent escalation to a major event
10 – 14 minutes
TMC increases driver
messaging. Field begins
efforts to restore free flow
traffic
TMC and field shall reach a
consensus on mitigation
success within 15 minutes
or less.
If a consensus cannot be
reached, mitigation should
be scaled upwards in
accordance with the St.
Louis District Work Zone
Resolution Ladder
Work Zones Whenever additional travel time is reported, this additional time shall be evaluated using this chart and adequate mitigation measures should begin within the parameters of this chart. TMC and field personnel are partners in the mitigation of traffic and notification of additional travel times should trigger the appropriate response from both parties. Chart is designed to be an additional travel time reference to establish parameters for gauging the travel impact through work zones and to provide guidance for taking mitigation actions. Travel times can be collected or reported via Blue Toad technology, field personnel, call reports, ITS, TMC cameras, etc. Major and Moderate impacts trigger an IAR (Immediate Action Required) event. IAR means work zone user and TMC partner together to take immediate actions to reduce or eliminate distress. During an IAR event mitigation procedures can range from increased driver notification up to and including removal of work zone. Additional mitigation procedures may require involvement of administration through use of the work zone resolution ladder. IAR event can be upgraded or downgraded as conditions change.
Data Key
28
Incident Levels
Major Impact Traffic Incident – Road closure > 2 hours Major traffic incidents are typically traffic incidents involving hazardous materials, fatal traffic crashes involving numerous vehicles, and other natural or man-made disasters. These traffic incidents typically involve closing all or part of a roadway facility for a period exceeding 2 hours. Moderate Impact Traffic Incident – Blocked travel lanes/closure 30 min – 2 hours Moderate traffic impact incidents typically affect travel lanes for a time period of 30 minutes to 2 hours, and usually require traffic control on the scene to divert road users past the blockage. Full roadway closures might be needed for short periods during traffic incident clearance to allow traffic incident responders to accomplish their tasks. Minor Impact Traffic Incident – Lane closures < 30 minutes Minor traffic incidents are typically disabled vehicles and minor crashes that result in lane closures of less than 30 minutes. On-scene responders are typically law enforcement and towing companies, and occasionally highway agency service patrol vehicles.
Definitions
511 – Gateway Guide’s phone line for automated call-in travel information in the St. Louis Metro Area
511 Floodgate Message – Road closure message sent from the TMC that is read at the beginning of a 511 call and posted to the banner on the website
ACTRA – Traffic signal management software program
Alert – Email message sent regarding an incident or event on the roadway
Arterial – Missouri State Highway Numbered Routes, not fully access controlled
Arterial Device – ITS equipment located along MoDOT arterials
Average Minutes per Mile – Number of minutes for a vehicle to travel one mile of roadway averaged over a section of roadway
BlueTOAD - a (Bluetooth Travel-time Origination and Destination) traffic monitoring system to collect high quality high density travel times by sampling a portion of actual travel times
Worst Time to Travel Clocks - The clocks found on the speed charts depict the progression of travel
speeds during the commute peak period at the worst congestion location along the route.
- For example, the clock on the left depicts conditions worsening at a particular location beginning at 6:30 a.m. with the slowest speeds between 7 a.m. and 8:15 a.m. Conditions improved at 8:45 a.m.
Data Key
29
DMS - Dynamic Message Signs along highway displaying incident and travel time information
Defined Sensor – A single sensor with an individual ID focused on a particular roadway; multiple defined sensors may be located at one physical sensor location
Driver messaging – Messages placed on DMS boards to alert drivers of incidents ahead of their direction of travel
EOC – Emergency Operations Center operated by MoDOT in Jefferson City
ER – MoDOT’s Emergency Response units that provide emergency assistance during nights and weekends typically not covered by Motorist Assist units
Freeway Device – ITS device located along a MoDOT freeway, such as interstates and other fully access controlled highways
Gatewayguide.com – Gateway Guide’s website for local St. Louis area traffic information
GuidePost – Area of report highlighting important mobility topics for the month
IDOT - Illinois Department of Transportation
KC Scout – Gateway Guide’s counterpart for the greater Kansas City Metropolitan area, a collaboration involving both MoDOT and the Kansas DOT
Mobility – Ease of movement over roadway, through system, and or work zone
MMU – Conflict monitor hardware installed at a signal system
MRB – Mississippi River Bridge under construction north of downtown St. Louis
Observed Work zone – Work zone tracked by traffic cameras at the TMC
Peak Average – Daily speed sensor readings over an entire weekday rush commute period averaged for an entire month
PSB - Poplar Street Bridge
Regional Mobility Overview – Map depicting congestion areas based on speed index ratings derived from speed sensor readings
Speed Index – a ratio of the speed at which vehicles travel during a period to the speed at free-flow conditions
Stats to Watch – Area of report highlighting interesting trends for the report month, or data to be closely followed
STLtraffic – Email group consisting of Gateway Guide personnel and Gateway Guide’s media partners, messages sent to the group are also posted on Twitter
TMC – Traffic Management Center (also referred to as Gateway Guide)
TMC Alert – Email alert sent to an internal group of Gateway Guide personnel
Data Key
30
VDS – Video Detection System, signal equipment used to detect vehicles at an intersection
Visibility- Concerning placement of traffic signs, signals, devices, barricades and warning lights for safety within work zone or construction area to help motorist and workers move within a work zone safely; Clearly visible and legible, distinguishable to approaching traffic during day and night, aligned with road user’s line of vision, and positioned as to not obstruct other applicable traffic control devices. Must meet MUTCD standards for condition and must be covered, turned or properly stowed when not in use.
Zoning In – section of report highlighting important construction topics for the report month
