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HomeMy WebLinkAboutEmergency Item - Tri-County Area Open Roads Policy rofG Mayor ,Sspe cente ood Liv Commissioners S. Scott Vandergrift r _ "'h,,.,, ' Danny Howell, District 1 ' Scott Anderson, District 2 City Manager Rusty Johnson,District 3 Jim Gleason - Nancy J. Parker, District 4 STAFF REPORT DATE: November 18,2003 TO: The Honorable Mayor and City Commissioners THROUGH: Russ Wagner, AICP Community Development Director FROM: Terry L. James,AICP Principal Planner SUBJECT: Tri-County Area Open Roads Policy Emergency Agenda Item ISSUE: Should the Mayor and City Commissioners approve the Open Roads Policy? BACKGROUND: The "Open Roads" policy is an agreement between the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP), the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), Local Law Enforcement, and Local Fire Rescue to expedite the removal of vehicles, cargo, and debris from State Highway System Roadways in order to restore, in the most efficient and timely manner, the safe, orderly, and expeditious flow of vehicles following a crash or incident. DISCUSSION: All local governments in the tri-county area are request to endorse these overall goals. Ocoee, through an oversight by the FDOT, was not included in the initial mail requesting support; as a result, Ocoee is the only government that has not endorsed this program. This program sets goals for local law enforcement and fire-rescue along with FHP and FDOT to clear all accidents/incidents from the traveling roadway within 90 minutes of the arrival of the first responding officer. Both the Police and Fire Departments have reviewed this policy and are supportive of these goals. STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends the Mayor and City Commissioners authorize the execution of this agreement on behalf of the City. City of Ocoee• 150 N Lakeshore Drive•Ocoee,Florida 34761 phone: (407)905-3100•fax:(407)656-8504•www.ci.ocoee.fl.us Central Florida's "TRI COUNTY AREA OPEN ROADS POLICY" Quick Clearance for Safety and Mobility This agreement by and between the Florida Highway Patrol(FHP),the Florida Department of Transportation(l'DOT),Local Law Enforcement and Local Fire Rescue,establishes a policy for the FHP,FDOT,Local Law Enforcement and Local Fire Rescue personnel to expedite the removal of vehicles,cargo,and debris from roadways on the State Highway System to restore,in an URGENT MANNER the safe and orderly flow of traffic following a motor vehicle crash or incident on Florida's roadways. Whereas: Public safety is the highest priority and must be maintained especially when injuries or hazardous materials are involved. The quality of life in the State of Florida is heavily dependent upon the free movement of people,vehicles,and commerce. The FHP, FDOT,city and county officials of Local Law Enforcement and Local Fire Rescue share the responsibility for achieving and maintaining the degree of order necessary to make this free movement possible. Agencies have the responsibility to do whatever is reasonable to reduce the risk to responders,secondary crashes,and delays associated with incidents,crashes,roadway maintenance, construction,and enforcement activities. The following operating standards are based on the philosophy that the State Highway System will not be closed or restricted any longer than is absolutely necessary. Be it resolved: Roadways will be cleared of damaged vehicles,spilled cargo,and debris as soon as it is safe to do so. It is understood that damage to vehicles or cargo may occur as a result of clearing the roadway on an urgent basis. While reasonable attempts to avoid such damage shall be taken,the highest priority is restoring traffic to normal conditions. Incident caused congestion has an enormous cost to society. This cost is significantly greater than the salvage value of an already damaged vehicle and its cargo. Florida Highway Patrol Responsibilities Members of the FHP who respond to the scene of traffic incidents will make clearing the travel portion of the roadway a high priority. When an investigation is required,it will be conducted in as expedient a manner as possible considering the severity of the collision. Non-critical portions of the investigation may be delayed until lighter traffic conditions allow completion of those tasks. The FHP will only close those lanes absolutely necessary to conduct the investigation safely. FHP will coordinate with FDOT representatives to set up appropriate traffic control,establish alternate routes,expedite the safe movement of traffic trapped at the scene,and restore the roadway to normal as soon as possible. Whenever practical,crashes on access controlled roadways will be removed to off ramps,accident investigation sites or other safe areas for completion of investigations to reduce the delays associated with motorists slowing to"gawk". Tow trucks will be requested as soon as it is evident that they will be needed to clear the roadway. FHP will assure that all authorized tow operators have met established competency levels and that the equipment is of appropriate size,capacity and design meeting the standards for the State of Florida. The FHP will not unnecessarily cause the delay in reopening all or part of a roadway to allow a company to dispatch their own equipment to off-load cargo or recover a vehicle or load that is impacting traffic during peak traffic hours or creating a hazard to the public. The FHP and FDOT will cooperate in planning and implementing clearance operations in the most safe and expeditious manner. Florida Department of Transportations Responsibilities When requested by the FHP or other emergency agency,FDOT will respond and deploy resources to major traffic incidents 24 hours a day,7 days per week.Each FDOT District will develop and implement response procedures to meet the goal of providing initial traffic control within 30 minutes of notification during normal working hours and 60 minutes after hours and on weekends. The FDOT,in coordination with the FHP,will upgrade traffic controls,determine detour routes,and discuss clearance strategies. When requested FDOT will provide temporary traffic controls to ensure a safe workzone for all responders and the motoring public. Page 1 of 4 The FDOT in cooperation with the FHP will determine and deploy the necessary heavy equipment and manpower to reopen the roadway if clearance of the travel lanes are being delayed or is determined that the task is beyond the capabilities of the wrecker service on scene. If cargo or spilled loads[non-hazardous]are involved,FDOT will make every effort to assist in the relocation of the materials in the shortest possible time,using whatever equipment necessary. All such materials or any vehicles relocated by FDOT will be moved as short a distance as possible to eliminate the traffic hazard. FDOT personnel will document all hours and equipment used for traffic control;roadway clearance and debris clean up. FDOT will place traffic control devices at the scene should any damaged vehicles or cargo remain adjacent to the travel lanes on the shoulder for removal at a later time. The FHP and FDOT will continually work together to ensure that the needs of motorists on our highways are being met in the most professional,safe and efficient manner. Local Law Enforcement Department's Responsibilities Members of Local Law Enforcement who respond to the scene of traffic incidents when applicable will make clearing the travel portion of the roadway a high priority. When an investigation is required,it will be conducted in as expedient a manner as possible considering the severity of the collision. Non-critical portions of the investigation may be delayed until lighter traffic conditions allow completion of those tasks. The Local Law Enforcement will close only those lanes absolutely necessary to safely conduct the investigation.The Local Law Enforcement will coordinate with FDOT representatives to set up appropriate traffic control,establish alternate routes,expedite the safe movement of traffic trapped at the scene,and restore the roadway to normal conditions as soon as possible. Whenever applicable,damaged vehicles on access controlled roadways will be removed to off ramps,accident investigation sites,or other safe areas for completion of investigations to reduce the delays associated with motorists slowing to"gawk." Tow trucks will be requested as soon as it is evident that they will be needed to clear the roadway. The Local Law Enforcement will assure that all authorized tow operators have met established competency levels and that the equipment is of appropriate size,capacity,and design to meet all standards of the State of Florida. The Local Law Enforcement will not unnecessarily cause any delay in reopening all or part of a roadway to allow a company to dispatch its own equipment to off-load cargo or recover a vehicle or load that is impacting traffic during peak traffic hours or creating a hazard to the public. The Local Law Enforcement and FDOT will cooperate in planning and implementing clearance operations in the most safe and expeditious manner. Local Fire Department's Responsibilities Members of Local Fire Departments who respond to the scene of traffic incidents will make clearing the travel portion of the roadway a high priority. When working an incident(where there is no injuries or hazardous materials)operations will be conducted in as expedient a manner as possible considering the severity of the collision. The Local Fire Departments will close only those lanes absolutely necessary to safely conduct the fire/rescue operations.The Local Fire Departments will coordinate with FDOT representatives to set up appropriate traffic control,establish alternate routes,expedite the safe movement of traffic trapped at the scene,and restore the roadway to normal conditions as soon as possible. As soon as FDOT has set up appropriate traffic control for the safety of the responders and travelers,Local Fire Departments will move any fire apparatus or vehicles initially used to shield responders to appropriate areas. Therefore,it is agreed as follows: The FHP,FDOT,city and county officials of Local Law Enforcement and Local Fire Rescue,will evaluate and continually update and modify their operating policies,procedures,rules,and standards to assure they are consistent with this"OPEN ROADS POLICY" agreement. The FHP,FDOT,city and county officials of Local Law Enforcement and Local Fire Rescue,will research and evaluate and conduct training in the most advanced technologies,equipment,and approved methods for the documentation and investigation of crash or incident scenes.FHP and Local Law Enforcement will prioritize the investigative tasks and reopen travel lanes upon completion of tasks that must be conducted,without the impediment of traffic flowing. Page 2 of 4 Roadways will be cleared as soon as possible.It is the goal of all agencies that all incidents be cleared from the roadway within 90 minutes of the arrival of the first responding officer.This goal being made with the understanding that more complex scenarios may require additional time for complete clearance. It is further agreed that: The city,FHP,FDOT,and county officials of Local Law Enforcement and Local Fire Rescue,will actively solicit and enlist other state,county,and local agencies,political subdivisions,industry groups,and professional associations to endorse and become party to this"OPEN ROADS PHILOSOPHY"for the State of Florida. Agreement Execution:Use of Counterpart Signature Pages This Agreement,and any amendments hereto may be simultaneously executed in multiple counterparts,each of which so executed shall be deemed to be an original,and such counterparts together shall constitute one and the same instrument.Notwithstanding any other provision herein to the contrary,this Agreement shall constitute an agreement amongst the parties that have executed a counterpart and parties listed but not executing shall not be deemed to be parties to the Agreement. In N; ness whereof,each party hereto has caused this document to be executed in its name and on its behalf by it's duly authorized Chief Executive. FLORIDA DEP t F r NSPORTATION FLORIDA HIGHWAY PATROL $ CK ,�f Y: By: Mi. ae Sn •-r, `.E. Major Cyrus B •wn D:/. •. s- Troop Co • •. der-Troop D ' a/.Yt Fiv /. Date: / 1' Date: 9-V-03 Page 3 of 4 CITY OF OCOEE SIGNATURE PAGE For CENTRAL FLORIDA'S TRI COUNTY OPEN ROADS POLICY APPROVED: ATTEST: CITY OF OCOEE, FLORIDA Jean Grafton, City Clerk S. Scott Vandergrift, Mayor DATE: (SEAL) FOR USE AND RELIANCE ONLY BY APPROVED BY THE OCOEE CITY THE CITY OF OCOEE, FLORIDA COMMISSION AT A MEETING HELD APPROVED AS TO FORM AND LEGALITY ON November 18, 2003, this day of , 2003. UNDER AGENDA ITEM NO. Emergency Item FOLEY & LARDNER By: City Attorney Received Agency YES City of Altamonte Springs YES City of Apopka YES City of Casselberry YES Town of Eatonville YES City of Edgewood YES _ City of Kissimmee YES Osceola County YES City of Lake Mary YES City of Longwood YES City of Maitland City of Ocoee YES City of Orlando YES Orange County YES City of Oviedo YES City of Sanford YES Seminole County YES City of St. Cloud YES Town of Windermere YES City of Winter Garden YES City of Winter Park YES City of Winter Springs YES Osceola County Sheriff's Department YES Seminole County Sheriff's Department YES Orange County Sheriff's Department *** The above agencies include Fire Rescue and Law Enforcement.