511PAConnect, a Pennsylvania initiative that provides motorists with information during long-term road closures, has won four transportation awards, Gov. Tom Wolf recently said.
Drivers who want to receive closure alerts can register for phone-call updates or automatic text messages. Alerts only are sent to motorists directly affected by the closures.
The awards won include the 2017 Toll Excellence Award for Technology from the International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association; 2017 Transportation Achievement Award for Operations from the Institute for Transportation Engineers; Outstanding ITS Project for 2017 from the Intelligent Transportation Society of New Jersey; and 2017 Project of the Year from the Mid-Atlantic Section of the Institute of Transportation Engineers.
“Following Winter Storm Jonas, I asked our agencies to develop a tool to better keep drivers informed about the status of accident cleanup and highway reopening and 511PAConnect was the innovative response,” Wolf said. “511PAConnect is the first initiative of its kind to link directly to a targeted group of travelers who are being impacted by, or who are approaching, a large-scale emergency.”
The initiative is an effort between four agencies: the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency, the State Police, and the PA Turnpike Commission.