Write Up:

A traffic incident is an unplanned event that blocks travel lanes and temporarily reduces the number of vehicles that can travel on the road. The speed of incident clearance is essential to the highway system returning back to normal conditions. Responding to and quickly addressing the incident (crashes, debris and stalled vehicles) improves system performance.

St. Louis recorded 3,393 incidents in the fourth quarter of 2019. The average time to clear traffic incidents was 28.3 minutes, an increase of 0.35% from the fourth quarter of 2018.

Kansas City recorded 2,378 incidents in the fourth quarter of 2019. The average time to clear traffic incidents was 22.9 minutes, a decrease of 9.8% from the fourth quarter of 2018.

Springfield recorded 441 incidents in the fourth quarter of 2019. The average time to clear traffic incidents was 32.5 minutes, no change from the fourth quarter of 2018.

Rural counties of I-70 between MM 28 (Oak Grove) to MM 203 (Foristell) recorded 80 incidents in the fourth quarter of 2019. The average time to clear traffic incidents was 57.1 minutes, a decrease of 39.8% from the fourth quarter of 2018.

Rural counties of I-44 between MM 0 (Oklahoma) to MM 69 (Springfield) and MM 91 (Strafford) to MM 224 (Sullivan) recorded 104 incidents in the fourth quarter of 2019. The average time to clear traffic incidents was 57.9 minutes, a decrease of 36.7% from the fourth quarter of 2019.

Incidents during the fourth quarter for Kansas City, St. Louis and Springfield consisted of MoDOT's truck-mounted attenuators  getting struck, multiple winter weather events and an increase in tractor trailer crashes. Tractor trailer crashes are typically the longest duration events to clear. The number of traffic incidents continues to climb, but MoDOT is making good progress in clearing them quicker. This can be attributed to Motorist Assist Operator programs, work efforts of the Transportation Systems Management and Operations implementation team and  commitment to Traffic Incident Management training. Incident verification and response continues to be a problem on the rural sections of I-44 and I-70. Integration of Waze into the TransSuite ATMS software is another source of information to help notify the three Transportation Management Centers of traffic related events. Both St. Louis and Kansas City districts continue piloting automated systems to send notifications to vehicles approaching in-action Emergency Response vehicles to improve safety.

Purpose of the Measure:

This measure is used to determine the trends in incident clearance on the state highway system.

Measurement and Data Collection:

Advanced transportation management systems are used by the St. Louis, Kansas City and Springfield traffic management centers to record incident start time and the time when all lanes are declared cleared. Traffic incidents can be divided into three general classes of duration set forth by the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices that include minor, intermediate and major incidents. Each class has unique traffic control characteristics and needs.

This target is established by projecting a 10% improvement over a five-year average.