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4.4.3.4 Safety-Related Functional Flow Diagrams

The ITS National Architecture refers to safety-related functions as being coordinated under "Emergency Management." However, through the Transportation Management Committee and stakeholder input, it was determined that this term did not accurately reflect the overall safety (and non-emergency) operations in the region. Also, there are several distinct "emergency management" agencies in central Ohio causing confusion when terminology was used interchangeably. In hopes of clarification, Emergency Management is referred to in this document as Safety Management.

Safety Management encompasses various emergency centers supporting public safety including police and fire stations, search and rescue special detachments, and HazMat response teams. Safety Management interfaces with other emergency management centers to support coordinated emergency response involving multiple agencies. Safety Management creates, stores and utilizes emergency response plans to facilitate coordinated response. It also tracks and manages emergency vehicle fleets using automated vehicle location technology and two-way communications with the vehicle fleet. Real-time traffic information received from the other centers is used to further aide the emergency dispatcher in selecting the emergency vehicle(s) and routes that will provide the most timely response. Interface with traffic management centers allows strategic coordination in tailoring traffic control to support en-route emergency vehicles. Interface with transit management centers allows coordinated use of transit vehicles to facilitate response to major emergencies.

The designers of the National ITS Architecture appeared to be very traffic- and transit-oriented and not as "in tune" to the operations and needs of agencies and organizations on the safety side of ITS. Three additional functional flow diagrams emerged during subcommittee discussions. These diagrams are in addition to the two that the subcommittee used from the National ITS Architecture: Emergency Response and Emergency Routing. These additional functional flow diagrams are:

• Special Events Management
• Incident Management (Unplanned Incidents)
• Motorist Assistance

It should be noted that Motorist Assistance might also fall under the jurisdiction of the Traffic-related Functional Flow Diagrams. We have included this Functional Flow Diagram as part of Safety because of the safety implications if motorists are not provided assistance in a timely manner.

As seen previously, the Columbus Metropolitan Freeway System falls along multiple jurisdictions. This poses a problem for emergency services responding to incidents on the freeway. It is often difficult to assess which agency should respond to the incident, and oftentimes a non-jurisdictional officer may be closer to the scene than one that falls within the jurisdiction. In an effort to achieve the best emergency services possible in the Columbus metropolitan area, intergovernmental/interagency agreements need to be established to enable response to any/all jurisdictions in freeway emergencies.

This functional flow diagram supports dynamic routing of emergency vehicles and coordination with traffic management centers for special priority on the selected route(s). The Safety Management center will support routing for the emergency fleet based on real-time traffic conditions reported through Traffic Management centers. The Emergency Vehicle would also be equipped with dedicated short-range communications for local signal preemption.

Safety Management functions are performed by city, county and township fire and police divisions, the sheriff's office, 911, Franklin County EMA, suburban EMS, and the state highway patrol. It is desired that coordination among these entities will exist and provide seamless emergency services. Through coordination of these entities existing wide-area wireless communications would be utilized between the Safety Management center and Emergency Vehicles to enable an incident command system to be established and supported at the emergency location. In addition, the Safety Management center will include hardware and software for tracking emergency vehicles. Transit Management, Traffic Management, and many other allied agencies may each participate in the coordinated response. Potential for such coordination is currently being achieved through the movement to the central Ohio 800MHz communications effort.

The Emergency Vehicle refers to the police car, fire truck, ambulance or any other vehicle used for assistance during an incident for any jurisdiction within central Ohio. While on the road the Emergency Vehicle receives dispatching requests and suggested route information from the Safety Management center via the 800 MHz radio system. The Emergency Vehicle is also able to report back to the Safety Management center regarding the incident status.

The City of Columbus Division of Fire has signal preemption along the High Street corridor (a total of 16 signals), enabling equipped vehicles to transmit an optical signal to signal controllers to turn red lights, green. At this time no police division in the region has an interest in signal preemption.

The City of Columbus Division of Police has AVL systems on a portion of their fleet vehicles. AVL enables dispatchers to track police cars to identify who is closest to an area that needs assistance. AVL also enables dispatchers a view of what route is best to get police cars to emergencies and augments the safety of their personnel in the field.

Routes with signal preemption are favored and are utilized as much as possible when routing emergencies. In the field, signal preemption along the Roadway is activated by strobe lights on fire trucks, to turn an entire corridor of red lights to green. Currently this system is passive and requires the officer in the vehicle to "ping" the system to reveal his location.

The link to the Traffic Management center allows for future strategic coordination in tailoring traffic control to support en-route emergency vehicles. In the field, signal preemption is activated by strobe lights on fire trucks that change red lights to green and overrides any timing pattern in the corridor. In the future, change would be received by the Traffic Management center which then adjusts the timing plans of surrounding intersections to reflect the newly changed "all green" corridor. Additionally, the Safety Management center will communicate directly with the Traffic Management center and request the emergency routes it desires to have turned green for the swift passage of emergency vehicles.

This functional flow diagram illustrates the management of special events (OSU, Crew, Blue Jacket games, State Fair, etc.) so that the impact to the transportation network and traveler safety is minimized utilizing ITS. The best possible way to manage special events is through coordination. This may involve regional coordination of the event promoter with freeway control, Traffic Management and Safety Management centers. Information from these diverse sources is collected and correlated to detect and verify incidents and implement an appropriate response. Through coordination of these entities existing wide-area wireless communications would be utilized between the Safety Management center and Emergency Vehicles to enable an incident command system to be established and supported at the emergency location.

The Event Promoter notifies the Safety Management center when an event (e.g., Red, White and Boom) is going to take place and makes arrangements for traffic control with a private traffic control provider in the affected area to ensure that it continues to run smoothly. Traffic control is also provided through coordination with Traffic Management and Construction and Maintenance (see 4 and 6).

Safety Management is an important component of managing special events. For many special events the event promoter notifies the police to be on the scene for traffic control or other types of crowd control and to take preventative measures should an emergency arise. Contact can be established and maintained through a CAD system or through emergency field personnel. Through coordination of the Safety Management center and the Traffic Management center, an incident command system can be established and supported at the emergency location, should an incident arise.

The Safety Management center may also elect to dispatch a mobile command post during special events to help manage safety and traffic concerns, and to have an on-site command center, should an incident arise.

In the case of an incident the Safety Management center will dispatch appropriate Emergency Vehicles. Emergency Vehicle refers to the police car, fire truck, ambulance, or any other vehicle used for assistance during an incident. While on the road the Emergency Vehicle receives dispatching requests and suggested route information from the Safety Management center via the 800 MHz radio system. The Emergency Vehicle is also able to report back to the Safety Management center regarding the incident status.

Traffic Management supports traffic operations personnel in developing appropriate responses to coordinate with Safety Management and other incident response personnel to confirmed incidents. The response may include traffic control strategy modifications. The same equipment assists the operator by monitoring incident status as the response unfolds.

A link between the Traffic Management center and sensors in the Roadway will be able to detect how fast traffic is moving and whether or not an accident has taken place. CCTV cameras will enable Traffic Management center staff to view the Roadway and verify if there is an accident. If an incident has been verified, VMS above the roadway can be utilized to inform the traveling public of the incident ahead and if there are alternate routes that should be investigated. VMS can also be used to direct traffic during special events, to route traffic away from known congested areas.

When assistance is needed prior to a special event, the Safety Management center coordinates with the Traffic Management center to dispatch a Construction and Maintenance crew. For example, Construction and Maintenance bags traffic meters in areas designated as no parking during special events, and takes care of other traffic control not provided by the Event Promoter.

This functional flow diagram illustrates how unplanned incidents can be managed with the aid of ITS systems, so the impact to the transportation network and traveler safety is minimized. Information is collected and correlated to detect and verify incidents and implement an appropriate response. Traffic Management supports traffic operations personnel in developing an appropriate response in coordination with Safety Management and other incident response personnel to confirmed incidents. The response may include traffic control strategy modifications and presentation of information to affected travelers using traffic traveler information. Traffic Management and Safety Management operators monitor incident status as the response unfolds.

Safety Management functions are performed by city, county, and township fire and police divisions, the sheriff's office, 911, Franklin County EMA, suburban EMS, and the state highway patrol. It is desired that coordination between these entities will exist and provide seamless emergency services. Communication regarding an incident may also be through emergency field personnel. The appropriate Safety Management center will dispatch appropriate vehicles suited to the incident. A link to the Traffic Management center through a CCTV video feed will enable emergency personnel the ability to dispatch the appropriate emergency vehicles as well as pinpoint the accident location.

The Safety Management center may also select to dispatch a mobile command post to handle communications and establish an incident command structure. Currently, only the City of Columbus Division of Police and Fire Dispatch Centers will have the video feed from the Columbus Metropolitan Freeway Management System. This capability is, however, available to all central Ohio dispatch centers.

In the case of an incident the Safety Management center will dispatch appropriate Emergency Vehicles to the site. Emergency Vehicle refers to the police car, fire truck, ambulance, or any other vehicle used for assistance during an incident. Several Emergency Vehicles are equipped with AVL and signal preemption capabilities (see Emergency Routing Functional Flow Diagram). While on the road the Emergency Vehicle receives dispatching requests and suggested route information from the Safety Management center via the 800 MHz radio system that provides for both voice and data. The Emergency Vehicle is also able to report back to the Safety Management center regarding the incident status.

The Traffic Management center supports traffic operations personnel in developing an appropriate response in coordination with Safety Management and other incident response personnel to confirmed incidents. The response may include traffic control strategy modifications, such as posting messages on VMS ahead of the incident to provide motorists time to divert. The Traffic Management center uses loops in the pavement and CCTV cameras to monitor incident status as the response unfolds. The Traffic Management center utilizes data gathered along the Roadway to determine the best course of action.

A link between the Traffic Management center and loop sensors in the Roadway will be able to detect how fast traffic is moving and whether or not an incident has taken place. CCTV cameras will enable Traffic Management center staff to view the Roadway and verify the location and severity of the incident. If an incident has been verified, VMS above the roadway can be utilized to inform the traveling public of the incident ahead and if there are alternate routes that should be investigated.

When assistance is needed in clearing up debris or setting up barricades, the Safety Management center dispatches appropriate traffic response equipment. This response equipment could include the TERT to set up barricades around an incident site, or street sweepers to clean up debris after an incident has been remedied. The TERT is owned and operated by the city of Columbus and normally only operates on the city of Columbus' sections of the freeway and arterial streets. However, increased integration could allow this asset to have a higher utilization and provide support on the entire central Ohio freeway system.

This functional flow diagram provides a basic representation of one way by which Safety Management providing Emergency Response to the public in central Ohio could be aided by ITS systems. Emergency Response provides the computer-aided dispatch systems, emergency vehicle equipment and wireless communications that enable safe and rapid deployment of appropriate resources to an emergency.

Currently, Safety Management functions are performed by the city and suburban fire and police divisions, the sheriff's office, 911, Franklin County EMA, suburban EMS, and the state highway patrol. It is desired that coordination between these entities will exist and provide seamless emergency services. Through coordination of these entities existing wide-area wireless communications would be utilized between the Safety Management center and Emergency Vehicles to enable an incident command system to be established and supported at the emergency location. Safety Management includes hardware and software for tracking the emergency vehicles. Transit Management, Traffic Management and many other allied agencies may each participate in the coordinated response.

The Emergency Vehicle refers to the police car, fire truck, ambulance or any other vehicle used for assistance during an incident. While on the road the Emergency Vehicle receives dispatching requests and suggested route information from the Safety Management center via the 800 MHz radio system through both voice and data. The Emergency Vehicle is also able to report back to the Safety Management center regarding the incident status.

The City of Columbus Division of Fire has signal preemption along the High Street corridor, enabling equipped vehicles to transmit an optical signal to signal controllers to turn red lights, green. Routes with signal preemption are favored and are utilized as much as possible when responding to emergencies. Currently, no police division in Franklin County has voiced an interest in signal preemption.

The City of Columbus Division of Police has an AVL system on a portion of its fleet vehicles. AVL enables dispatchers to track police cars to identify who is closest to an area that needs assistance. AVL also enables dispatchers a view of what route is best to get police cars to emergencies, although currently this system is slow and updates too slowly to be used effectively in its current configuration.

Safety Management centers receive road and weather information from a variety of Information Service Providers, television, amateur radio, the National Weather Service in Wilmington, OH, e-mail and through telephone contact with the media. This information is used to augment Safety Management centers' own data and allows them to make the best possible decisions in where and when to respond to incidents. This type of information is particularly useful in responding to severe weather situations.

For large-scale incidents the Safety Management center will coordinate with the Transit Management center. This interface allows coordinated use of transit vehicles to facilitate response to major emergencies and to efficiently evacuate as many people as possible. COTA currently has this type of relationship with local Safety Management centers including the Franklin County EMA.

The Safety Management center will have video feeds from the Traffic Management center to keep up-to-date on incident information as it happens. These video feeds allow emergency responders a clear view of what is involved in the incident and what vehicles/services need to be dispatched. Traffic Management will also be capable of communicating with the Safety Management center to verify incidents that they have detected (see Network Surveillance functional flow diagram). Currently, only the City of Columbus Division of Police and Fire Dispatch Centers will have the video feed from the Columbus Metropolitan Freeway Management System. This capability is, however, available to all central Ohio dispatch centers.

This functional flow diagram illustrates how Traffic Management will manage roadside obstructions so that the impact to the transportation network and traveler safety is minimized. Information is collected and correlated to detect and verify these incidents and implement an appropriate response. The response may include traffic control strategy modifications and presentation of information to affected travelers using traffic traveler information.

The Traffic Management center will be staffed during peak hours to monitor the roadway, and when a motorist needs assistance, take appropriate measures so that traffic continues to run smoothly. The Traffic Management center utilizes data gathered along the Roadway to detect when an incident has occurred and then takes the best course of action.

A link between the Traffic Management center and loop sensors in the Roadway will be able to detect how fast traffic is moving and whether or not an incident has taken place. CCTV cameras will enable Traffic Management center staff to view the Roadway and verify the severity and location of the incident. If an incident has been verified, VMS above the roadway can be utilized to inform the traveling public of the incident ahead and if there are alternate routes that should be investigated.

When an obstruction along the roadway or a stranded motorist is detected and verified and assistance is needed, the Traffic Management center dispatches a Public Fleet Vehicle or motorist assistance vehicle. AAA provides the only motorist assistance van in the region currently. It provides basic services such as assisting motorists with temporary repairs, fuel, air, calling for assistance, and removing road debris, etc.

Motorist assistance vehicles would allow safety personnel, fire and police from any jurisdiction on the freeway, the capability to request assistance in setting up portable changeable message signs, to direct/divert traffic and to alert travelers before they get caught in congestion they could divert to avoid. These vans could also serve a service patrol function offering aid to motorists so that cars and trucks on the side of the freeway can be cleared more quickly, thereby alleviating congestion. Drivers of the vans should be ASE certified mechanics and trained Emergency Medical Technicians.

A connection to Safety Management is required for immediate response to major incidents that are identified by motorist assistance vehicles while they are on the road. A direct link will be provided to 911, and then the 911 operator will make the decision as to what jurisdictions' officers should respond.

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