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

these activities contribute toward improvedtraffic and pedestrian flow within the venuesite area. For instance, the deployment offield observers allows for data and informationto be collected, processed, and transmittedin real-time to traffic management supervisors.Volunteers can facilitate improvedoperations at mode transfer points,such as shuttle bus stations and pickup/drop-offareas. Public agency stakeholdersdo not have the resources or budgetto assign paid staff for every activity supportingtraffic management plan implementation.These stakeholders, coupled withprivate contractor support, can instead workto supervise teams of volunteers chargedwith traffic and pedestrian managementsupport tasks.This section focuses on tasks associated withthe use of volunteer personnel in managingtravel for planned special events. As emphasizedin this and previous chapters,stakeholders have the responsibility of assigningstaff experienced in handling challengingtasks that comprise a particular traffic,pedestrian, or parking managementstrategy. While some experienced personnelmay not have worked a planned specialevent in the past, they have performed thesame or similar task(s) on regular basis as aresult of day-to-day responsibilities or responseto other events (e.g., traffic incidentsand roadway construction activities). Forinstance, the actions involved in programminga CMS or HAR during a planned specialevent does not change from its use inother situations. The stakeholder simulationexercises described in the previous sectionrepresent training for experienced personnelon managing travel for a particular plannedspecial event. In contrast to experiencedpersonnel, many volunteers have no pastexperience in managing travel for plannedspecial events, nor do they have experiencein tasks associated with traffic and pedestriancontrol and parking operations.ACTIVITYEvent transportationservicesActive traffic andpedestrian controlPassive traffic controlParking operationsOperations monitoringCrowd controlEvent patron assistanceTable 8-4Day-of-Event Personnel Resource RequirementsEXAMPLE TASKSRECOMMENDEDPERSONNEL• Operate shuttle bus. Experienced personnel• Manage competing traffic and pedestrian flow. Experienced personnel• Monitor barricades and other traffic control devices.• Guide traffic or pedestrian flow (e.g., pull-through).• Guide vehicles through parking area access point.• Process vehicles at parking area gate.• Park vehicles.• Monitor parking area occupancy levels.• Observe traffic and pedestrian operations.• Collect performance evaluation data.• Prevent overcrowding and vehicular/pedestrian conflicts.• Disseminate directions at mode transfer points.• Provide support at shuttle bus stations.VolunteersExperienced personneland volunteersExperienced personneland volunteersExperienced personnelVolunteers8-10