Emergency Transportation Operations

New Publications

Release of the Best of Public Safety and Emergency Transportation Operations CD (Publication Number FHWA-JPO-08-037)

FHWA Office of Operations is pleased to announce the release of "The Best of Public Safety and Emergency Transportation Operations" CD, produced through partnership activities among several US Department of Transportation modes. The CD provides the reader with a compilation of more than 40 resource documents. These documents are arranged by the following focus areas: Public Access to Emergency Services; Enhanced Information Sharing; Evacuation Management and Operations; Transportation Operations During Biohazard Situations; Preparedness and Response; and Planned Special Events. Read More!

Using Highways For No-Notice Evacuations - Routes to Effective Evacuation Planning Primer Series

Evacuations result from a myriad of different events and circumstances. A jurisdiction may evacuate one block of office buildings due to a water-main break, a neighborhood due to an uncontrolled fire, a major portion of a downtown area due to a hazardous materials or terrorist incident, or even an entire city due to earthquakes, hurricanes or volcanic eruptions. While successful evacuations are difficult to execute due to the level of coordination required among agencies, jurisdictions and the public, little-or no-notice events magnify the challenges of evacuating at-risk populations. After a no-notice incident, responders will have a very limited window of opportunity to prepare before an evacuation begins. Good advanced planning—to the degree possible—may aid in rapid evacuation operations, thus saving lives, during little- or no-notice incidents. This latest primer in the Effective Evacuations Primer Series provides officials with guidance on how to plan for evacuations resulting from little or no-notice events. (HTML, PDF 20.9MB) (Publication Number: FHWA-HOP-08-003)

ETO Planning Documents List

The Office of Operations has worked diligently with technical experts in a variety of disciplines to develop documents that may aid in efforts to contribute to evacuation and other emergency operations and transportation plans. Many of these documents are available now electronically, with numerous additional documents expected to be released over the next several months. The ETO Planning Documents List constitutes an inventory of these new publications.

Transportation is critical to emergency response, no matter the size or the frequency of the event. FHWA is committed to improving our nation's ability to manage emergencies that take place within the transportation network infrastructure or affects it in some way.

The Emergency Transportation Operations (ETO) Program

Addresses Activities Along a Response Continuum, Regardless of Cause
Provides Technical Assistance, Knowledge and Tools

Resources are available for the following components of ETO:

Current News

Communicating With the Public Using ATIS During Disasters: A Guide for Practitioners - August 6, 2007
This document provides advice on use of Advanced Traveler Information Systems (ATIS) during disasters and is intended not only for state and local transportation agencies but for their partners in public safety and emergency management agencies. It offers practical guidance to managers of transportation management centers and emergency operations and to public information officers who may be called on to staff joint information centers during disasters.
Managing Pedestrians During Evacuation of Metropolitan Areas - April 11, 2007
The FHWA Office of Operations is pleased to present a new publication, Managing Pedestrians During Evacuation of Metropolitan Areas. This report presents practices that transportation managers and public safety agencies use to ensure that people evacuating on foot and in vehicles do not hamper each others' mobility. It recommends that planners address the potential for large numbers of people evacuating on foot while others evacuate by vehicles. It includes considerations where the deliberate implementation of a pedestrian evacuation strategy is preferred in urban areas to get large numbers beyond the danger zone. We hope that you will find this product useful in your efforts to improve Federal, State and local capacities to respond to day-to-day or larger incidents. If you have any questions or would like to offer comments that might improve our documents, please feel free to contact Laurie Radow, Evacuations Program Manager, or Kimberly Vásconez, Emergency Transportation Operations Team Leader, Office of Operations, FHWA. Both can be reached through ETO@dot.gov. (Publication Number: FHWA-HOP-07-066)
Emergency Transportation Operations Planning Documents List - April 10, 2007
At this time of year, local, State and Federal agencies in at-risk areas review and revise their emergency plans and take steps to prepare for any response that may be required for incidents resulting from hurricanes, fires, severe storms, earthquakes, hazardous materials accidents or other causes. Increasingly, public safety officials are viewing transportation professionals as critical partners in first-response planning and operations related to traffic incidents, special events, or disaster responses. Since transportation operations personnel should be actively contributing to these efforts, the Office of Operations has worked diligently with technical experts in a variety of disciplines to develop documents that may aid in efforts to contribute to evacuation and other emergency operations and transportation plans. Many of these documents are available now electronically, with numerous additional documents expected to be released over the next several months. The Emergency Transportation Operations (ETO) Planning Documents list constitutes an inventory of these new publications. All may be found on the Operations web site under Publications, http://www.ops.fhwa.dot.gov/publications/publications.htm, as well as the ETO web site. We hope that you will find the listed products useful in your efforts to improve Federal, State and local capacities to respond to day-to-day or larger incidents. If you have any questions or would like to offer comments that might improve our documents, please feel free to contact Laurie Radow, Evacuations Program Manager, or Kimberly Vásconez, Emergency Transportation Operations Team Leader, Office of Operations, FHWA. Both can be reached through ETO@dot.gov.
Archived News

Evacuations in the News

A table summary compiled from a weekly review of evacuation news reports.

Contact Us

For more information about Emergency Transportation Operations, please contact:
Kimberly Vasconez
Emergency Transportation Operations Team Leader
Kimberly.Vasconez@dot.gov

Search Operations: Home About Operations Office Directory Program Areas Regulation/Policy Publications Speeches Press Room Links Subject Index Feedback	Emergency Transportation Operations New Publications Release of the Best of Public Safety and Emergency Transportation Operations CD (Publication Number FHWA-JPO-08-037) FHWA Office of Operations is pleased to announce the release of "The Best of Public Safety and Emergency Transportation Operations" CD, produced through partnership activities among several US Department of Transportation modes. The CD provides the reader with a compilation of more than 40 resource documents. These documents are arranged by the following focus areas: Public Access to Emergency Services; Enhanced Information Sharing; Evacuation Management and Operations; Transportation Operations During Biohazard Situations; Preparedness and Response; and Planned Special Events. Read More! Using Highways For No-Notice Evacuations - Routes to Effective Evacuation Planning Primer Series Evacuations result from a myriad of different events and circumstances. A jurisdiction may evacuate one block of office buildings due to a water-main break, a neighborhood due to an uncontrolled fire, a major portion of a downtown area due to a hazardous materials or terrorist incident, or even an entire city due to earthquakes, hurricanes or volcanic eruptions. While successful evacuations are difficult to execute due to the level of coordination required among agencies, jurisdictions and the public, little-or no-notice events magnify the challenges of evacuating at-risk populations. After a no-notice incident, responders will have a very limited window of opportunity to prepare before an evacuation begins. Good advanced planning—to the degree possible—may aid in rapid evacuation operations, thus saving lives, during little- or no-notice incidents. This latest primer in the Effective Evacuations Primer Series provides officials with guidance on how to plan for evacuations resulting from little or no-notice events. (HTML, PDF 20.9MB) (Publication Number: FHWA-HOP-08-003) ETO Planning Documents List The Office of Operations has worked diligently with technical experts in a variety of disciplines to develop documents that may aid in efforts to contribute to evacuation and other emergency operations and transportation plans. Many of these documents are available now electronically, with numerous additional documents expected to be released over the next several months. The ETO Planning Documents List constitutes an inventory of these new publications. Transportation is critical to emergency response, no matter the size or the frequency of the event. FHWA is committed to improving our nation's ability to manage emergencies that take place within the transportation network infrastructure or affects it in some way. The Emergency Transportation Operations (ETO) Program Addresses Activities Along a Response Continuum, Regardless of Cause Provides Technical Assistance, Knowledge and Tools Read More about Emergency Transportation Operations, FHWA and Transportation Security Administration (TSA) roles/responsibilities, and the FHWA ETO Program. Resources are available for the following components of ETO: Prevention Preparedness Response Recovery Military Deployment Additional Resources Related Program Areas Current News Communicating With the Public Using ATIS During Disasters: A Guide for Practitioners - August 6, 2007 This document provides advice on use of Advanced Traveler Information Systems (ATIS) during disasters and is intended not only for state and local transportation agencies but for their partners in public safety and emergency management agencies. It offers practical guidance to managers of transportation management centers and emergency operations and to public information officers who may be called on to staff joint information centers during disasters. Managing Pedestrians During Evacuation of Metropolitan Areas - April 11, 2007 The FHWA Office of Operations is pleased to present a new publication, Managing Pedestrians During Evacuation of Metropolitan Areas. This report presents practices that transportation managers and public safety agencies use to ensure that people evacuating on foot and in vehicles do not hamper each others' mobility. It recommends that planners address the potential for large numbers of people evacuating on foot while others evacuate by vehicles. It includes considerations where the deliberate implementation of a pedestrian evacuation strategy is preferred in urban areas to get large numbers beyond the danger zone. We hope that you will find this product useful in your efforts to improve Federal, State and local capacities to respond to day-to-day or larger incidents. If you have any questions or would like to offer comments that might improve our documents, please feel free to contact Laurie Radow, Evacuations Program Manager, or Kimberly Vásconez, Emergency Transportation Operations Team Leader, Office of Operations, FHWA. Both can be reached through ETO@dot.gov. (Publication Number: FHWA-HOP-07-066) Emergency Transportation Operations Planning Documents List - April 10, 2007 At this time of year, local, State and Federal agencies in at-risk areas review and revise their emergency plans and take steps to prepare for any response that may be required for incidents resulting from hurricanes, fires, severe storms, earthquakes, hazardous materials accidents or other causes. Increasingly, public safety officials are viewing transportation professionals as critical partners in first-response planning and operations related to traffic incidents, special events, or disaster responses. Since transportation operations personnel should be actively contributing to these efforts, the Office of Operations has worked diligently with technical experts in a variety of disciplines to develop documents that may aid in efforts to contribute to evacuation and other emergency operations and transportation plans. Many of these documents are available now electronically, with numerous additional documents expected to be released over the next several months. The Emergency Transportation Operations (ETO) Planning Documents list constitutes an inventory of these new publications. All may be found on the Operations web site under Publications, http://www.ops.fhwa.dot.gov/publications/publications.htm, as well as the ETO web site. We hope that you will find the listed products useful in your efforts to improve Federal, State and local capacities to respond to day-to-day or larger incidents. If you have any questions or would like to offer comments that might improve our documents, please feel free to contact Laurie Radow, Evacuations Program Manager, or Kimberly Vásconez, Emergency Transportation Operations Team Leader, Office of Operations, FHWA. Both can be reached through ETO@dot.gov. Archived News Evacuations in the News A table summary compiled from a weekly review of evacuation news reports. Contact Us For more information about Emergency Transportation Operations, please contact: Kimberly Vasconez Emergency Transportation Operations Team Leader Kimberly.Vasconez@dot.gov
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