2/12/2013
Reed Hollinshead
ITD Communication
208-334-8881
reed.hollinshead@itd.idaho.gov
Boise drivers wasted two workdays sitting in traffic last year; value of Incident Response highlighted
BOISE - The average driver in the Boise area sat in traffic for two full workdays – 16 hours – last year, according to a recent study. The study's findings highlight the importance of the Idaho Transportation Department's Incident Response program and its efforts to keep traffic flowing. Although frustrating to drivers, the wait is one of the shortest in the nation.
The annual Urban Mobility Report by the Texas Transportation Institute allocates an average cost to the delay of $16.79 per hour for each individual, and a commercial cost of $86.81 per hour of delay. Add to that the fuel cost of gasoline or diesel, and the economic cost of a delay can be thousands of dollars.
Incident Response works to clear the highway after crashes, and returns traffic to its normal flow in the heavily traveled Treasure Valley I-84 corridor, including the Connector. The crew also works in conjunction with the Idaho State Police and provides a valuable service for them.
"Whenever our Incident Response units take on a minor incident, that keeps the state police from having to send an officer to that incident, allowing law enforcement to keep patrolling for dangerous drivers and more serious incidents," said Dan Bryant, who oversees the program for ITD. Click here for a picture of Incident Response providing assistance.
The crew responded to nearly 12,000 driver issues on the roadway in 2012 in 5,300 separate traffic stops.
Nationwide, the total financial cost of congestion in 2011 was $121 billion, up one billion dollars from the year before and translating to $818 per U.S. commuter. Of that total, about $27 billion was wasted time and diesel fuel from trucks moving goods.Whether it's changing a flat tire, jump-starting a car, refilling a radiator, providing a gallon of gas to a stranded motorist, offering use of a cell phone or other assistance, the Incident Response team stays busy. Crews also provide updates to the state's 511 Traveler Service through the State Communications Center and assist local law enforcement entities. On the three major summer holidays (Memorial Day, Fourth of July and Labor Day), the four-man crew usually sends two trucks to Idaho 55 between Horseshoe Bend Hill and Cougar Mountain Lodge to reduce traffic congestion.
During peak commuting hours Monday through Friday, the Incident Response team patrols 24 miles from the Northside exit to Eisenman interchange, and the Connector from the Flying Wye to 13th Street. The team routinely puts 120,000 miles per year on their odometers.
“The primary mission of the Incident Response program was and still is the facilitation of traffic flow on the interstate,” said Bryant. “To reduce wasted time in traffic is one objective of that mission, but so too is clearing accidents with stalled vehicles and secondary accidents, and eliminating the associated injuries and damages resulting from them.”