Continuity of Operations (COOP) Planning Guidelines for Transportation Agencies (2005)

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T R A N S P O R T A T I O N R E S E A R C H B O A R D WASHINGTON, D.C. 2005 www.TRB.org T r a n s i t C o o p e r a t i v e R e s e a r c h P r o g r a m a n d N a t i o n a l C o o p e r a t i v e H i g h w a y R e s e a r c h P r o g r a m TCRP REPORT 86/NCHRP REPORT 525 Research Sponsored by the Federal Transit Administration in Cooperation with the Transit Development Corporation and by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials in Cooperation with the Federal Highway Administration SUBJECT AREAS Planning and Administration • Operations and Safety • Aviation Public Transit • Freight Transportation • Marine Transportation TRANSPORTATION SECURITY Volume 8: Continuity of Operations (COOP) Planning Guidelines for Transportation Agencies ANNABELLE BOYD JIM CATON AND ANNE SINGLETON Boyd, Caton & Grant Transportation Group Earlysville, VA AND PETER BROMLEY AND CHUCK YORKS McCormick Taylor, Inc. Philadelphia, PA

TRANSIT COOPERATIVE RESEARCH PROGRAM The nation’s growth and the need to meet mobility, environmental, and energy objectives place demands on public transit systems. Current systems, some of which are old and in need of upgrading, must expand service area, increase service frequency, and improve efficiency to serve these demands. Research is necessary to solve operating problems, to adapt appropriate new technologies from other industries, and to introduce innovations into the transit industry. The Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) serves as one of the principal means by which the transit industry can develop innovative near-term solutions to meet demands placed on it. The need for TCRP was originally identified in TRB Special Report 213—Research for Public Transit: New Directions, published in 1987 and based on a study sponsored by the Urban Mass Transportation Administration—now the Federal Transit Admin- istration (FTA). A report by the American Public Transportation Association (APTA), Transportation 2000, also recognized the need for local, problem-solving research. TCRP, modeled after the longstanding and successful National Cooperative Highway Research Program, undertakes research and other technical activities in response to the needs of transit service providers. The scope of TCRP includes a variety of transit research fields including plan- ning, service configuration, equipment, facilities, operations, human resources, maintenance, policy, and administrative practices. TCRP was established under FTA sponsorship in July 1992. Proposed by the U.S. Department of Transportation, TCRP was authorized as part of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 (ISTEA). On May 13, 1992, a memorandum agreement outlining TCRP operating procedures was executed by the three cooperating organizations: FTA, The National Academies, acting through the Transportation Research Board (TRB); and the Transit Development Corporation, Inc. (TDC), a nonprofit educational and research organization established by APTA. TDC is responsible for forming the independent governing board, designated as the TCRP Oversight and Project Selection (TOPS) Committee. Research problem statements for TCRP are solicited periodically but may be submitted to TRB by anyone at any time. It is the responsibility of the TOPS Committee to formulate the research program by identifying the highest priority projects. As part of the evaluation, the TOPS Committee defines funding levels and expected products. Once selected, each project is assigned to an expert panel, appointed by the Transportation Research Board. The panels prepare project statements (requests for proposals), select contractors, and provide technical guidance and counsel throughout the life of the project. The process for developing research problem statements and selecting research agencies has been used by TRB in managing cooperative research programs since 1962. As in other TRB activ- ities, TCRP project panels serve voluntarily without compensation. Because research cannot have the desired impact if products fail to reach the intended audience, special emphasis is placed on disseminating TCRP results to the intended end users of the research: transit agencies, service providers, and suppliers. TRB provides a series of research reports, syntheses of transit practice, and other supporting material developed by TCRP research. APTA will arrange for workshops, training aids, field visits, and other activities to ensure that results are implemented by urban and rural transit industry practitioners. The TCRP provides a forum where transit agencies can cooperatively address common operational problems. The TCRP results support and complement other ongoing transit research and training programs. TCRP REPORT 86, VOLUME 8 Project J-10F ISSN 1073-4872 ISBN 0-309-08841-0 Library of Congress Control Number 2005934508 © 2005 Transportation Research Board Price $21.00 NOTICE The project that is the subject of this report was a part of the Transit Cooperative Research Program conducted by the Transportation Research Board with the approval of the Governing Board of the National Research Council. Such approval reflects the Governing Board’s judgment that the project concerned is appropriate with respect to both the purposes and resources of the National Research Council. The members of the technical advisory panel selected to monitor this project and to review this report were chosen for recognized scholarly competence and with due consideration for the balance of disciplines appropriate to the project. The opinions and conclusions expressed or implied are those of the research agency that performed the research, and while they have been accepted as appropriate by the technical panel, they are not necessarily those of the Transportation Research Board, the National Research Council, the Transit Development Corporation, or the Federal Transit Administration of the U.S. Department of Transportation. Each report is reviewed and accepted for publication by the technical panel according to procedures established and monitored by the Transportation Research Board Executive Committee and the Governing Board of the National Research Council. Special Notice The Transportation Research Board of The National Academies, the National Research Council, the Transit Development Corporation, and the Federal Transit Administration (sponsor of the Transit Cooperative Research Program) do not endorse products or manufacturers. Trade or manufacturers’ names appear herein solely because they are considered essential to the clarity and completeness of the project reporting. Published reports of the TRANSIT COOPERATIVE RESEARCH PROGRAM are available from: Transportation Research Board Business Office 500 Fifth Street, NW Washington, DC 20001 and can be ordered through the Internet at http://www.national-academies.org/trb/bookstore Printed in the United States of America

NATIONAL COOPERATIVE HIGHWAY RESEARCH PROGRAM Systematic, well-designed research provides the most effective approach to the solution of many problems facing highway administrators and engineers. Often, highway problems are of local interest and can best be studied by highway departments individually or in cooperation with their state universities and others. However, the accelerating growth of highway transportation develops increasingly complex problems of wide interest to highway authorities. These problems are best studied through a coordinated program of cooperative research. In recognition of these needs, the highway administrators of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials initiated in 1962 an objective national highway research program employing modern scientific techniques. This program is supported on a continuing basis by funds from participating member states of the Association and it receives the full cooperation and support of the Federal Highway Administration, United States Department of Transportation. The Transportation Research Board of the National Academies was requested by the Association to administer the research program because of the Board’s recognized objectivity and understanding of modern research practices. The Board is uniquely suited for this purpose as it maintains an extensive committee structure from which authorities on any highway transportation subject may be drawn; it possesses avenues of communications and cooperation with federal, state and local governmental agencies, universities, and industry; its relationship to the National Research Council is an insurance of objectivity; it maintains a full-time research correlation staff of specialists in highway transportation matters to bring the findings of research directly to those who are in a position to use them. The program is developed on the basis of research needs identified by chief administrators of the highway and transportation departments and by committees of AASHTO. Each year, specific areas of research needs to be included in the program are proposed to the National Research Council and the Board by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. Research projects to fulfill these needs are defined by the Board, and qualified research agencies are selected from those that have submitted proposals. Administration and surveillance of research contracts are the responsibilities of the National Research Council and the Transportation Research Board. Note: The Transportation Research Board of the National Academies, the National Research Council, the Federal Highway Administration, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, and the individual states participating in the National Cooperative Highway Research Program do not endorse products or manufacturers. Trade or manufacturers’ names appear herein solely because they are considered essential to the object of this report. Published reports of the NATIONAL COOPERATIVE HIGHWAY RESEARCH PROGRAM are available from: Transportation Research Board Business Office 500 Fifth Street, NW Washington, DC 20001 and can be ordered through the Internet at: http://www.national-academies.org/trb/bookstore Printed in the United States of America NCHRP REPORT 525, VOLUME 8 Project 20-59(21) ISSN 0077-5614 ISBN 0-309-08841-0 Library of Congress Control Number 2005934508 © 2005 Transportation Research Board Price $21.00 NOTICE The project that is the subject of this report was a part of the National Cooperative Highway Research Program conducted by the Transportation Research Board with the approval of the Governing Board of the National Research Council. Such approval reflects the Governing Board’s judgment that the program concerned is of national importance and appropriate with respect to both the purposes and resources of the National Research Council. The members of the technical committee selected to monitor this project and to review this report were chosen for recognized scholarly competence and with due consideration for the balance of disciplines appropriate to the project. The opinions and conclusions expressed or implied are those of the research agency that performed the research, and, while they have been accepted as appropriate by the technical committee, they are not necessarily those of the Transportation Research Board, the National Research Council, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, or the Federal Highway Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation. Each report is reviewed and accepted for publication by the technical committee according to procedures established and monitored by the Transportation Research Board Executive Committee and the Governing Board of the National Research Council.

COOPERATIVE RESEARCH PROGRAMS STAFF ROBERT J. REILLY, Director, Cooperative Research Programs CHRISTOPHER W. JENKS, TCRP Manager CRAWFORD F. JENCKS, NCHRP Manager S. A. PARKER, Senior Program Officer EILEEN P. DELANEY, Director of Publications HILARY FREER, Senior Editor KAMI CABRAL, Editor PROJECT PANEL (TCRP Project J-10F and NCHRP Project 20-59(21)) MIKE MCALLISTER, Virginia DOT (Chair) DAVID P. ALBRIGHT, New Mexico DOT MICHAEL J. COLLINS, Maryland DOT JOHN COLLURA, University of Massachusetts—Amherst WILLIAM J. FLEMING, Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority Police, Braintree, MA BEN GOMEZ, Dallas Area Rapid Transit JAMIE C. QUARRELLES, District of Columbia DOT GRETCHEN WALLIS, Utah Transit Authority RICHARD WINSTON, Chicago Transit Authority DAN FEREZAN, FHWA Liaison VINCENT P. PEARCE, FHWA Liaison ANTHONY B. TISDALE, FTA Liaison DAWN TUCKER, Research and Innovative Technology Administration Liaison ERNIE BARTOSH, TSA Liaison MATTHEW D. RABKIN, Volpe National Transportation Systems Center Liaison GREG HULL, APTA Liaison CHRISTOPHER A. KOZUB, National Transit Institute Liaison TRB Executive Committee Subcommittee for TCRP JOHN R. NJORD, Utah DOT (Chair) JENNIFER L. DORN, Federal Transit Administration, U.S.DOT MICHAEL D. MEYER, Georgia Institute of Technology WILLIAM W. MILLAR, American Public Transportation Association ROBERT E. SKINNER, JR., Transportation Research Board MICHAEL S. TOWNES, Hampton Roads Transit, Hampton, VA C. MICHAEL WALTON, University of Texas, Austin LINDA S. WATSON, LYNX—Central Florida Regional Transportation Authority TRB Executive Committee Subcommittee for NCHRP JOHN R. NJORD, Utah DOT (Chair) JOHN C. HORSLEY, American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials MICHAEL D. MEYER, Georgia Institute of Technology MARY E. PETERS, Federal Highway Administration ROBERT E. SKINNER, JR., Transportation Research Board MICHAEL S. TOWNES, Hampton Roads Transit, Hampton, VA C. MICHAEL WALTON, University of Texas, Austin

The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished schol- ars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. On the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and techni- cal matters. Dr. Ralph J. Cicerone is president of the National Academy of Sciences. The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter of the National Acad- emy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government. The National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achieve- ments of engineers. Dr. William A. Wulf is president of the National Academy of Engineering. The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, on its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Harvey V. Fineberg is president of the Institute of Medicine. The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy’s purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the Acad- emy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both the Academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Ralph J. Cicerone and Dr. William A. Wulf are chair and vice chair, respectively, of the National Research Council. The Transportation Research Board is a division of the National Research Council, which serves the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering. The Board’s mission is to promote innovation and progress in transportation through research. In an objective and interdisciplinary setting, the Board facilitates the sharing of information on transportation practice and policy by researchers and practitioners; stimulates research and offers research management services that promote technical excellence; provides expert advice on transportation policy and programs; and disseminates research results broadly and encourages their implementation. The Board’s varied activities annually engage more than 5,000 engineers, scientists, and other transportation researchers and practitioners from the public and private sectors and academia, all of whom contribute their expertise in the public interest. The program is supported by state transportation departments, federal agencies including the component administrations of the U.S. Department of Transportation, and other organizations and individuals interested in the development of transportation. www.TRB.org www.national-academies.org

AUTHOR ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The authors of this report would like to thank the members of the NCHRP Project 20-59(21)/TCRP Project J-10F Panel for their comments, direction and support. We would also like to thank Mr. Stephan A. Parker, Transportation Research Board, Senior Program Officer, for his guidance and encouragement. This report would not have been written without the 78 trans- portation agencies that completed surveys, participated in telephone interviews, submitted documents, and otherwise supported our research. Special thanks are offered to the Oregon Department of Transportation, the Maryland Department of Transportation, the Missouri Department of Transportation, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, the Washington Metropolitan Area Tran- sit Authority, and Hiawatha Metro Transit for the materials they contributed to the project. The authors of this report would also like to thank the five trans- portation agencies that provided reviewers to support field valida- tion of the draft guidelines, worksheets, templates, and CD-ROM: • Arizona Department of Transportation, Office of Maintenance Engineer; • Centre Area Transportation Agency, State College, Pennsyl- vania, Office of Planning; • Maryland Department of Transportation, Homeland Security Office, Office of Engineering, Procurement and Emergency Services; • Miami-Dade Transit, Miami, Florida, Office of Safety and Security; and • City of Phoenix, Arizona, Traffic Management Center, Depart- ment of Streets. These reviewers contributed greatly to the final product.

FOREWORD By S. A. Parker Staff Officer Transportation Research Board This eighth volume of both NCHRP Report 525: Surface Transportation Security and TCRP Report 86: Public Transportation Security is designed to assist transporta- tion agencies in evaluating and modifying existing plans, policies, and procedures, as called for in the National Incident Management System (NIMS). In his September 8, 2004, letter to state governors, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge wrote that “NIMS provides a consistent nationwide approach for Federal, State, terri- torial, tribal, and local governments to work effectively and efficiently together to pre- pare for, prevent, respond to, and recover from domestic incidents, regardless of cause, size, or complexity.” Many state DOTs and public transportation agencies have emergency response plans that address immediate operational situations; those plans typically do not include contingencies for carrying out emergency response plans either from alternate facili- ties or over an extended period. Continuity of Operations (COOP) plans describe how an organization will prepare for, respond during, and recover from a disruption in inter- nal operations whether caused by naturally occurring or human-caused events. COOP plan implementation, which may include relocation or reassignment of essential func- tions, can be triggered through (1) denial of use of facilities, (2) loss of power, (3) loss of telecommunications, (4) suddenly unavailable personnel, or (5) inaccessible infor- mation technology systems. The objective of Volume 8: Continuity of Operations (COOP) Planning Guidelines for Transportation Agencies is to provide guidelines for state and local transportation agencies to develop, implement, maintain, train for, and exercise COOP capabilities. The guidelines are expected to be applied by designated agency continuity planners using templates to customize COOP plans for their local conditions. The templates and guidelines should provide a managed and measurable process to ensure continuation of essential operations. Execution of these plans helps transportation agencies ensure the performance of critical services even in an operating environment that is threatened, diminished, or incapacitated. The planning guidelines in this report are supplemented online with downloadable worksheets, a template for a completed COOP plan, a series of brochures that can be used to explain the COOP planning process to staff, a draft PowerPoint presentation that may be customized and presented to transportation executive leadership, and more than 300 resource documents organized in an electronic COOP library. These guidelines were developed jointly under TCRP and NCHRP. They are appropriate for COOP planning personnel at state and local transportation agencies responsible for all modes of transportation. McCormick Taylor, Inc., prepared this volume of NCHRP Report 525/TCRP Report 86 under NCHRP Project 20-59(21)/TCRP Project J-10F.

Emergencies arising from terrorist threats highlight the need for transportation managers to minimize the vulnerability of travelers, employees, and physical assets through incident prevention, preparedness, mitigation, response, and recovery. Man- agers seek to reduce the chances that transportation vehicles and facilities will be tar- gets or instruments of terrorist attacks and to be prepared to respond to and recover from such possibilities. By being prepared to respond to terrorism, each transportation agency is simultaneously prepared to respond to natural disasters such as hurricanes, floods, and wildfires, as well as human-caused events such as hazardous materials spills and other incidents. This is the eighth volume of NCHRP Report 525: Surface Transportation Security and the eighth volume of TCRP Report 86: Public Transportation Security, two series in which relevant information is assembled into single, concise volumes—each per- taining to a specific security problem and closely related issues. These volumes focus on the concerns that transportation agencies are addressing when developing programs in response to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, and the anthrax attacks that followed. Future volumes of the reports will be issued as they are completed. To develop this volume in a comprehensive manner and to ensure inclusion of sig- nificant knowledge, available information was assembled from numerous sources, including a number of state departments of transportation. A topic panel of experts in the subject area was established to guide the researchers in organizing and evaluating the collected data and to review the final document. This volume was prepared to meet an urgent need for information in this area. It records practices that were acceptable within the limitations of the knowledge avail- able at the time of its preparation. Work in this area is proceeding swiftly, and readers are encouraged to be on the lookout for the most up-to-date information. Volumes issued under NCHRP Report 525: Surface Transportation Security and TCRP Report 86: Public Transportation Security may be found on the TRB website at http://www.trb.org/SecurityPubs.

1 CHAPTER 1 Introduction Background, 1 Purpose of COOP Plans, 2 What Is a COOP Plan?, 2 How to Use These Guidelines, 3 5 CHAPTER 2 Existing Guidelines for COOP Planning Updated Federal Guidance, 5 COOP Objectives, 5 COOP Plan Contents, 6 Planning Requirements for Viable COOP Capability, 6 Time-Phasing, 7 9 CHAPTER 3 Initiating the COOP Process (Task 1) Importance of Top Management Support, 9 Developing the COOP Plan, 9 12 CHAPTER 4 Capabilities Survey (Task 2) Events Requiring Activation of the COOP Plan, 12 Summary, 13 15 CHAPTER 5 Identifying Essential Functions (Task 3) Step 1: Identify Areas of Responsibility, 15 Step 2: Compile Organizational Functions, 16 Step 3: Determine Criteria for Selecting Essential Functions, 18 Step 4: Identify Essential Functions, 19 Step 5: Identify Supporting Processes and Systems for Each Essential Function, 21 Step 6: Identify Key Management, Technical, and Supporting Personnel, 22 Step 7: Prioritize Essential Functions, 22 24 CHAPTER 6 COOP Plan Development, Review, and Approval (Task 4) Using Essential Functions to Build the COOP Plan, 24 Activating the COOP Plan, 24 Hours of Operation, 25 Alternate Facilities, 26 Relocation Planning, 29 COOP Activation Teams, 29 Delegation of Emergency Authority, 31 Order of Succession, 32 Vital Records and Databases, 32 Interoperable Communications, 33 35 CHAPTER 7 Development of Supporting Procedures (Task 5) COOP Procedures, 35 COOP Personnel Preparedness and Drive-Away Kits, 35 37 CHAPTER 8 Training, Testing, and Updating (Tasks 6, 7, and 8) Training Personnel and Testing the Plan, 37 Updating the Plan, 37 39 WORKSHEETS CONTENTS