The National Operations Center for Excellence or NOCoE recently named the winners of its 2024 Transportation Systems Management and Operations or TSMO Awards, given out annually to help promote the value of TSMO; a set of strategies that focuses on operational improvements that maintains and restores existing transportation system performance without adding extra capacity.
[Above photo by AASHTO]
NOCoE – a partnership of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, the Institute for Transportation Engineers, and the Intelligent Transportation Society of America, with support from the Federal Highway Administration – named the winners of its annual TSMO awards during the annual meeting of the AASHTO Committee on Transportation System Operations, held August 28-30 in Kansas City, MO.
The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation took home top honors as the contest’s overall winner for its “virtual queue” protection corridors, which helped reduce overall motor vehicle crashes by 11 percent annually along with a 50 percent reduction in truck-related fatal crashes.
The “virtual queue” project also saved 72,116 vehicle hours and $53.4 million annually by improving traffic flow and reducing delays.
The solution also benefited the agency overall. In a case study on the project, the winning team stated that the “virtual queue” project provided a “cost-effective solution using existing data, covering 600 miles of roadway with minimal costs, and delivering additional operation savings of nearly $300,000 per year.”
“PennDOT’s project is a perfect example of the benefits of TSMO,” said Nick Ramfos, director of NOCoE. “By using existing data and existing infrastructure, PennDOT is saving lives, saving money, and increasing mobility for the traveling public.”
PennDOT is among four other category winners, which includes “Best TSMO Project,” “Agency Improvement,” “Emerging Practices and Technologies,” and “Traffic Signals.” Case studies on those winning projects are posted on the NOCoE website.
NOCoE also named Raj Ponnaluri – vice president for CONSOR Engineers and formerly the manager of emerging technologies for the Florida Department of Transportation – as the winner of its 2024 Joey Sagal TSMO Leadership Award.
This award, formerly called the “TSMO Champion,” celebrates an individual for both advancing TSMO transportation system in their agency as well as for making significant contributions to advancing TSMO on a national level.
NOCoE renamed the award in memory of the late Joey Sagal of the Maryland Department of Transportation following his death in October 2023.
Sagal – who had over 24 years of experience in transportation operations – was a member of the NOCoE Technical Advisory Committee for five years and was serving as its chairman until his untimely passing.
AASHTO
AASHTO Names New Leaders for Audit Committee
October 11, 2024
AASHTO
