The Nebraska Department of Transportation and the Nebraska State Patrol recently held a ceremony to celebrate the signing of a “Memorandum of Understanding” or MOU that formalizes Traffic Incident Management or TIM partnerships with local first responders the counties of Banner, Cheyenne, Deuel, Kimball, and Scotts Bluff.
[Above photo of Mick Syslo by Nebraska DOT]
MOU signers include federal, state, and local transportation agencies; state and local law enforcement personnel; fire and rescue personnel; emergency communications; and tow truck operators, among others.
The agency said this MOU – signed by more than 50 agency representatives from the five counties, including 44 local agencies and seven state and federal agencies – commits the TIM partners across the area to work cooperatively toward safe and quick incident clearance from roadways statewide.
[Editor’s note: In November 2023, roughly 80 first responders from across Nebraska participated in a TIM live field exercise hosted by the Nebraska DOT and Nebraska State Patrol at the Law Enforcement Training Center in Grand Island, NE.]
Nebraska DOT added that this MOU also marks a “major milestone” in its nearly decade-long mission to advance the use of TIM strategies statewide. The agency pointed out that its TIM program focuses on the safety of roadway users and the professionals who respond to traffic incidents, as incident responders’ risk of injury or death is constant.
According to the National Traffic Incident Management Coalition, traffic crashes and “struck-by” incidents continue to be a leading cause of on-duty injuries and deaths for law enforcement officers, firefighters, emergency medical services personnel, and towing and recovery professionals – with over 207 incident responders fatality struck since 2020, with an additional 26 as of August 2024.
The Nebraska DOT added that its TIM Program also brings emergency professionals together to help promote “best practices” so traffic incidents like crashes can be cleared as quickly and safely as possible.
“By formalizing [these] partnerships, we’re strengthening our collective response, reducing incident clearance times and, most importantly, protecting the lives of first responders and the traveling public,” noted Mick Syslo, Nebraska DOT’s deputy director of operations, in a statement.
“We are proud to stand with our partners today to celebrate this milestone and reaffirm our shared commitment to keeping Nebraska’s roadways moving safely,” he said.
At the ceremony, Nebraska DOT, members of the Nebraska State Patrol, and local first responders discussed the critical work required to keep roadways safe in Nebraska, while raising awareness to travelers about how dangerous that work is for responders every day.
“Our partnership is crucial for improving road safety and ensuring our responders are better supported,” noted Captain Art Frerichs, Nebraska State Patrol Troop E. “This collaboration will help us respond more effectively and keep everyone on the road safer.”
Many state departments of transportation work to support local emergency professionals in a variety of different ways.
For example, the Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities recently launched of a new funding opportunity for Emergency Medical Services or EMS organizations statewide.
With a maximum request of $150,000, this initiative is designed to provide essential equipment and training to support EMS providers in keeping Alaska’s roadways safe.
“Having well trained and well-equipped emergency medical services along our highway systems is key to improving public safety,” explained Alaska DOT&PF Commissioner Ryan Anderson in a statement.
States
Nebraska DOT Profiled in Two-Minute Update Video
November 22, 2024
States
