2022 Castle Rock Summit held at KDOT

-

KDOT recently hosted the 2022 Castle Rock Summit in Bonner Springs, KS at the KDOT Area Office. Castle Rock is the 511 vendor for several states and municipalities across the country. 511 provides real-time updates about weather-related road conditions, construction, commercial vehicle restrictions, road closures and other events that impact traffic via the phone, internet, or mobile application.

The summit brought together multiple organizations to share what is going on within their agency and to educate them on the new features Castle Rock will be rolling out in the coming year.


According to KDOT Liaison Michael Flory, the Summit is also a great place for people to network and learn about other technologies and safety tools from other agencies.

"During the Summit, you learn about how each state and/or municipality is using 511 to get information out to public," Flory said.

Communication with the public from KDOT, MoDOT, and KC Scout is imperative for each of these organization's success and safety.

KC Scout provided a tour of its TMC as part of the summit. As KC Scout is the nation's only bi-state traffic management center, the organization has a unique perspective on traffic management that other states may be able to put to use with their own neighboring states.

In addition to the tour, KC Scout was also able to showcase other award winning innovations, such as JAWS and the Digital Alert Warning System JAWS is a truck equipped with a drop down skid plate allowing operators to safely and quickly remove debris in the roadway without getting out of their vehicle. The Digital Alert Warning System makes roadway safer by alerting drivers to nearby ER operators in real-time.

Each organization was able to learn new ways to improve safety and communication going forward. KC Scout is proud to have helped contribute to that cause.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The FIFA 2026 World Cup Update

-
Image
It’s never too early to start planning for a major event and the event coming to Kansas City in 2026 is just that. The FIFA World Cup will be coming to the area and local leadership throughout the KC metro are starting the conversation on how the community can be ready to accommodate visitors from all over the world. The official schedule has been released and Arrowhead Stadium will host six matches including four group fixtures and two knockout games. The transportation working group has been developed and met on March 15. This group includes organization’s like KDOT, MoDOT, KC Scout, KCMO, MARC, and more! They will continue to meet monthly to discuss ways to be proactive and ready to host. More updates are to come as we approach 2026. Visit fifa.com to learn more about the 2026 World Cup: Kansas City (fifa.com)
Read more

Scout Innovations for 2024

-
Image
  On December 13   KC Scout shared three separate Innovations Challenge Entries at the local showcase, including one from ER operators Hector Ortiz, Michael Maynard and Gregory Morgan in the equipment category. Their innovation was named “ C-3PO ” which is an acronym for “ C onfigurable C argo C ontrol & P rojection O ptimizer” a low-cost, easily installed cargo containment system for securing loose items in a truck bed. It has universal safety implications for every vehicle in MoDOT’s fleet.                                                                                    Figure 1  ER's C-3PO Scout also presented two productivity entries, each with “leveraging information sharing” for improved understanding of Scout functions. respectively named LOTUS ( L everaging O utreach T raining U sing S mall G roups) and EVOLVE ( E mbedded V ideo O ption L everaging V ital E ducation). LOTUS showed the effectiveness of small group, short duration training sessions, while EVOLVE was
Read more

Neil Kornis – Scout Senior TMC Operator and Eyes on the Road

-
Image
One April 25, KC Scout was hit with a cyberattack that shut down all cameras and communication to the roadways. Without their normal resources, the Scout team quickly pivoted to using alternative means to continue providing traffic incident management services. Without cameras, the TMC relied on getting accurate lane closure information from first responders including KHP MAV and MoDOT Emergency Response. After further coordination efforts, it was decided that KHP Scout Senior TMC Operator Neil Kornis would assist with KHP MAV in the field for the further facilitation between KC Scout and KHP. “The opportunity to sit alongside with a MAV and witness them doing their job while also discussing how we could do a better job as a team couldn’t be passed up,” Kornis said. During this time, not only did Kornis act as another point of communication between Scout and MAV, but he also used this time to evaluate ways the teams could improve.  “I used the time to put myself in the MAV’s shoes and
Read more