managing travel for planned special events - FHWA Operations ...

• Express service (e.g., new route andschedule)• Charter service (e.g., contract service)Numerous factors affect the category andextent of service provided. Public transitagencies must consider service boundariesand Federal Transit Administration regulations,particularly with regard to charter service.Profitability and resource availability,particularly if the planned special event occursduring a commute or high-recreationaltraffic period, governs decision-making aswell. A traffic management plan incorporatesthe transit plan by accommodatingproposed services and/or mitigating servicedeficiencies. It also promotes special traveldemand management strategies, such as designatingparking in preferred locations forhigh occupancy vehicles only.A traffic management plan includes operationsstrategies for managing eventgeneratedand background traffic within thelocal and regional area impacted. The planalso specifies techniques to facilitate siteaccess, parking, and pedestrian access. Table6-1 lists objectives of a planned specialevent traffic management plan. Pedestrianaccommodation involves handling pedestriansarriving to a planned special event venuevia all available modes of travel. To ensurethe dissemination of credible traveler information,the event planning team should includemedia representatives and partnershipsdeveloped if necessary. The traffic managementplan should include mechanismsfor dissemination of accurate and up-to-dateinformation. The plan should state expectedtransportation conditions, categorized bymode of travel (e.g., expected travel time bycar, transit, express/charter service, etc.),with congestion mitigation measures. Safetyprovisions include prevention of secondarytraffic incidents, reduced driver confusion,and reduced vehicular and pedestrian conflicts.Table 6-1Traffic Management Plan ObjectivesOBJECTIVE• Facilitate safe and quick travel to/from theevent site for spectators and participants.• Utilize excess transportation system capacity.• Maximize efficiency of parking operationsand internal circulation.• Accommodate pedestrians.• Automate traffic control tasks.• Disseminate useful and credible traveler information.• Maximize safety.• Minimize impact on affected residents andbusinesses.As shown in Table 6-2, the key componentsof a traffic management plan for plannedspecial events include:• Site access and parking plan• Pedestrian access plan• Traffic flow plan• Traffic control plan• En-route traveler information plan• Traffic surveillance plan• Traffic incident management and safetyplanNot all plan components represent a distinctformal plan but warrant consideration, eitherindividually or in concert with another component.For instance, a traffic incident management(TIM) plan may reference an existingTIM manual for a region but includenew operations details (e.g., freeway servicepatrol routes and quick clearance strategies)specific to the planned special event.The event planning team in-charge of developingthe traffic management plan alsoshould consider the number and operatingcharacteristics of traffic management teamcommand centers to be used on the day-ofevent.Figure 6-2 shows three commandcenter arrangements for traffic managementteam operations on the day-of-event. Stake-6EVENT PROFILE POST-EVENT ACTIVITIES DAY-OF-EVENT ACTIVITIES ADVANCE PLANNINGOVERVIEW6-3