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

BACKGROUNDPlanned special events pose a unique anddiverse set of challenges to stakeholderscharged with maintaining transportation systemsafety, mobility, and reliability. Thesechallenges include:• Managing intense travel demand• Mitigating potential capacity constraints• Influencing the utility associated withvarious travel choices• Accommodating heavy pedestrian flowManaging travel for planned special eventsencompasses both a local and regional level.The local level involves managing travel forone planned special event. The regionalperspective concerns proactively improvingtravel management for all planned specialevents occurring in a region where, in mostmajor U.S. metropolitan areas, hundreds ofplanned special events occur annually.Table i-1 compares current state-of-thepracticeactivities to state-of-the-art activitiesin managing travel for planned specialevents.Table i-1Practice of Managing Travel for Planned Special EventsSTATE-OF-THE-PRACTICESTATE-OF-THE-ARTInstitutional• Manage traffic and parking forplanned special events.• Manage travel for planned special events by adopting an intermodalapproach and utilizing travel demand management strategies.• Focus on traffic management team • Form multidisciplinary stakeholder groups and solicit public input.needs.• Secure verbal coordination betweenstakeholders.• Develop a joint operations policy or mutual-aid agreement betweenstakeholders.• Focus on single planned specialevents.• Conduct periodic ad-hoc eventplanning.• Focus on event-specific planningand operations only.• Obtain periodic participation andcontribution from community interestand event support stakeholders.• Create a committee on planned special events to monitor and plantravel management activities for all special events that occurwithin a region.Organizational• Follow an established event operations planning process.• Develop standard street use event routes and traffic flow routes.• Integrate event evaluation results into future planning activities tofacilitate continuous improvement of transportation system performance.• Establish stakeholder groups specific to advance planning andday-of-event activities to strengthen stakeholder coordination andcommitment.Technical• Utilize mobile devices: (1)• Utilize fixed freeway and arterialmanagement infrastructure tomonitor and manage traffic duringa planned special event. (1) o Portable traffic management systems (closed-circuit television,detectors, changeable message signs)o Portable traffic signalso Portable traffic management centers• Conduct point traffic and parkingmanagement using field personnel• Deploy automated systems:o Parking management systemso Dynamic trailblazer signso Lane control signso Blank-out signsi-2