1. Ohio QuickClear Ohio Fire Chiefs' Association Annual Conference
July 22 & 23, 2006
Ohio QuickClear
Professional Responders Guide for Safe and Effective Highway Incident Management

2. Alan L. Phillips
Emergency Response Coordinator – Highway Operations – Ohio Department of Transportation
Phone: or Fax:

3. Ohio QuickClear Committee
AAA Ohio
Buckeye State Sheriff’s Association
Ohio Association of Chiefs of Police
Ohio Department of Public Safety
Ohio Department of Transportation
Ohio Environmental Protection Agency
Ohio Fire Chief’s Association
Ohio Fire Marshall’s Office
Ohio Trucking Association
Towing and Recovery Association of Ohio

4. Mission Statement
“Committed to maintaining the safe and effective flow of traffic during emergencies as to prevent further damage, injury or undue delay of the motoring public.”

5. Video Clip

6. Incidents Happen

7. Freeway Management System

8. History Growing concern about crashes and traffic congestion
Formed in August 2002 by Directors of the Ohio Departments of Public Safety and Transportation

9. Introduction
A study by FHWA shows that secondary incidents make up roughly 20% of all incidents
In 2004, traffic-related deaths among officers in the line of duty made up 48% of the total deaths of officers for that year

10. Introduction
QuickClear is the coordination of response agencies to preserve the safety of crash victims, incident responders, and other motorists while reducing the impact and duration of incidents

11. Objective - Safety Safety Secondary Crashes Of victims
Of emergency response personnel
Of victims
Of other motorists
Secondary Crashes
Crashes that occur as a result of previous incident
Each freeway traffic crash increases the risk of a secondary crash by 600%

12. Objective - Safety

13. Objective - Congestion
More than half of all congestion is caused by incidents
Each minute of closure results in eight minutes of congestion delay

14. Objective - Congestion
If three lanes are blocked for two hours causing a four mile backup, over $1,000,000 will be lost
Congestion costs a large city 930 million dollars, 55.5 million hours of delay and 34.5 million gallons of fuel each year

15. Pictures of Incidents
The picture on the left shows a 75 car pileup in Atlanta, GA

16. Best Practices by Agency
All Agencies
Contact appropriate personnel
Coordinate plans with each other
Cooperation among agencies

17. Best Practices by Agency
All Agencies
Each incident is unique in its character and hazards.
Continued re-assessment of each scene is imperative.
Any time it is possible to open a lane, even temporarily, it should be done.

18. Best Practices by Agency
Fire and EMS
Traffic control methods
Coordination with other agencies when possible
Effective training
Effective communication
Incident Commander
Safety

19. Best Practices by Agency
Law Enforcement
Traffic control
Salvage recovery
Coordination
With Fire
With Transportation
Scene assessment
Incident Command System

20. Best Practices by Agency
Transportation Agencies
Safe and efficient roads
Develop response protocols for freeway closures
ODOT Playbook
Freeway Service Patrol (FSP)
Real-time photo images
Incident Command System

21. Freeway Service Patrol
Freeway service patrol programs that enlist full-time support reduce incident duration by 15 to 30 percent over programs with part-time staff.

22. ODOT Activities - ARTIMIS

23. ODOT Activities – Columbus FMS

24. ODOT Activities – Playbook

25. Best Practices by Agency
Towing and Recovery
Pre-qualification
Proper training
Safety first
Restore travel lanes when possible

26. Improved Incident Management
Adopting best practices at the local level can reduce the risk of traffic incidents, reduce incident duration and restore traffic flow as quickly as possible. It will also SAVE LIFES OF FIRST RESPONDERS AND THE MOTORING PUBLIC!

27. Disabled or Abandoned Vehicles
On average, 450 shoulder collisions happen each year
Limit time vehicles remain on the freeway shoulder
FSP
Disabled vehicle re-location
Minor repairs to re-locate vehicle

28. Driver Opportunities
Adopt “Steer It and Clear It”

29. Secondary Crash Example

30. Coordination – Pre-Incident
Transportation agencies
Develop diversion routes
Have equipment on hand to handle traffic
Review and update plans periodically
All agencies
Meet regularly to improve best practices and policies

31. Incident Command
Communicate with transportation agencies in the incident command structure
Request proper towing equipment in a timely manner
Provide regular updates to the media
Coordinate with TMC staff in urban areas with FMS

32. Major Incident Review Review previous results
Communicate to ensure previous conflicts are avoided

33. Alan L. Phillips
Emergency Response Coordinator – Highway Operations – Ohio Department of Transportation
Phone: or Fax:

34. Questions