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What is Driving Incident Management Technology for Departments of Transportation (DOT’s)?

According to the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), the most transforming implications for Emergency Management and Transportation operations are based on the increase of wireless communication, the rise of social media and the involvement of third parties. Together, these factors create massive two-way data and communication streams throughout the transportation network. State, local and private transportation organizations, in turn, can create controlled strategy, something that is vitally important considering that, in order to adapt to rapidly changing technology and increased traffic, transportation organizations will need to be flexible while growing value and ensuring the best experience for their stakeholders.

What is driving the need for technology for departments of transportation (DOTs)?

The Importance of Sharing Data

During a worst-case emergency scenario, communication between responders is both necessary and difficult. Third-party involvement within Emergency Management systems not only provides a wide and varied stream of data to operators, but it also provides data for their own applications and distribution channels. Having an incident management system that can proactively collect and analyze data to support decisions for improving daily operations and strategic planning for future enhancements is key to a successful organization.


Related: Learn how GDOT’s innovative use of technology has provided real-time information to support daily operations and enable fast and effective response to emergencies.


The Importance of Collaborating with Agencies

Many of the U.S. DOT’s most critical transportation systems rely on more than 450 information systems to conduct business. Many of these are from an age before APIs and web-based services, which means they are silos of data that may hinder efficiency or have security vulnerabilities that need to be addressed. Having a technology that can communicate and collaborate with local, state, and federal agencies is critical to the transfer of real-time information.

The Importance of Adapting to Different Scales of Events

The U.S. DOT’s biggest problem is not effectively testing their disaster recovery plans to ensure they will work in the event of a disruption. Four of the Department’s 12 Operating Administrations had disaster recovery plans that were not in compliance with DOT policy. The same is unfortunately true for many state and regional departments of transportation. If your employees don’t know their role and where to find their checklists, plans and points of contact during an incident, how will your organization be properly prepared? In addition, having an incident management system where your organization can document processes, adjust in real-time, and create after action reports will help prepare for any scaled event.

As technology evolves, it has become more important than ever to the success of DOTs. Using an incident management system that’s not only used in emergency situations but also daily operations will ensure your team is prepared at all times. Don’t wait until a major event occurs to see if your organization is prepared.

Written by

Akshay Birla

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