Turnpike wins award for app that reduces traffic delays

As a senior traffic operations manager for the Pennsylvania Turnpike, John Parker knew that tons of information is available about conditions on the toll road from a variety of sources: public safety reports, mobile apps such as Waze, even social media.

But at the turnpike’s control center in Harrisburg, it was a cumbersome process, at best, for the Traffic, Engineering and Operations personnel to monitor and use that information in the best ways possible.

So about a year ago, Mr. Parker and a team of colleagues developed a geographic information system web application to help. It’s known as Catch it Early, Act, Analyze and Review. That’s a real mouthful, but it means the app sorts through all of the information available to tell personnel what they really need to know so the agency can respond quicker when incidents occur.

And it has worked. In the year since turnpike staff began using the app, the turnpike has seen the average delay for accidents and other incidents reduced from one hour and 46 minutes to one hour and 18 minutes.

The International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association last week announced that the app, which is used internally to provide better information to traffic managers, received the organization’s Toll Excellence Award for Technology.

“It’s all about catching an incident as early as possible,” Mr. Parker said. “This [ app] gives our traffic managers a better idea of what’s happening on our road. It was a way to create some one- stop shopping with all the information in one place.”

The system analyzes 18 to 20 sources of information and alerts the traffic center when something seems amiss. For example, the speed of traffic is monitored every half- mile of the turnpike through a service called INRIX, and if the average speed falls below 35 mph, the system alerts staff.

The system also reviews social media information for key words like “accident” or “crash” gathered through a service called DataCapable; checks weather conditions through AccuWeather; and monitors emergency responders through the Traffic Incident Management System.

“That information gives our people an actual watch point,” Mr. Parker said. “It alerts them there’s something there we need to respond to.”

Once the agency responds to an incident, the system also makes it easier for those on site to report back to headquarters about what kind of personnel or equipment is needed to clear an accident scene, Mr. Parker said.

Also, when an incident is over, the agency can review its response to see whether it should do something different the next time a similar incident occurs.

“We know people hate being stuck in traffic more than five minutes,” Mr. Parker said. “We want to do everything we can to get them moving again.”