Final Research Report: A Transportation Guide for All-Hazards Emergency Evacuation (2013)

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NCHRP 20-59 (32) A Transportation Guide to All-Hazards Evacuation Final Report 178 Appendix D: Anticipated Research Results- Outreach and Implementation Plan Objective Identify a plan for outreach and presentation materials for emergency management and transportation agencies to use in order to create awareness of the toolkit. Products Expected from the Research Guidebook with operations plan templates and priority actions for each phase of emergencies to bridge the gap between needs for evacuation services and suppliers, while integrating the modes. See task descriptions, in particular Task 7 and Task 9. Also, Final Report with full documentation for those seeking the “foundations”. Audience or Market for the Product Emergency managers and planners, transportation operations leaders, transportation providers and potentially outreach specialists and community representatives. See task descriptions and outreach plan, below. Assessments of Impediments to Successful Implementation The work plan identifies a solid research plan, with experts in both practical and theoretical integration of modes and making the connections with persons in need of transportation, through a variety of means. The study plan is workable, and the anticipated operations templates and guidebook are achievable within the desired timeframe. The approach, which calls for internal vetting, interviews, workshops, and case studies to ensure that the Guide meets the needs and expectations of end users, should provide a reasonable “sounding board.” The team intends to keep the Guide as brief and directed to “how to” as possible – a “guidebook in a box”, so to speak – with the full document and other resources as backup. However, even the most compelling and useful guidebook, with all the outreach possible, may not claim the attention of those who most need to see it and use it; or if they do look at it, they may fail to act on it. For example, if transportation managers and emergency managers in some states or communities do not take the initiative to ensure that relational and institutional frameworks and agreements are in place among transportation providers, they are likely to find themselves lacking in resources and information in a major emergency. Likewise, if they do not identify a local, regional or state “champion”, and if they do not dedicate the limited staff time necessary to establish and maintain community liaisons, those states or communities may, for at least a time, lack a cohesive community network, that addresses the “demand” side and is more fully addressed in the companion effort, TCRP A-33, Communication with Vulnerable Populations: A Transportation and Emergency Management Toolkit. Continuity, institution-building, relationship-building and trust-building are key components of the effort. Institutions and Individuals Who Might Take Leadership in Applying the Research Product See Task 9 description and below. We anticipate that emergency managers and transportation managers will see and acknowledge the need and the common-sense practicality of the approach. In many communities, a “natural” institutional “home” and/or “champion” is expected to be grateful for the help, and to “run with it”. In other communities, it may be necessary for community activists, advocates and

NCHRP 20-59 (32) A Transportation Guide to All-Hazards Evacuation Final Report 179 persons with functional transportation needs to begin working with the emergency and transportation managers “from the ground up”, as noted in the section on Community and Advocate Outreach, below. Activities Necessary for Successful Implementation See task descriptions and discussion above and below. Criteria for Judging Progress and Consequences of Implementation Widespread dissemination across transportation and emergency planning organizations, with community outreach plans in place. Follow-up surveys with State DOTs, EMAs, and MPOs are recommended at one-year, two-year and five- year intervals to see 1) if the Guide has been received and read; 2) if recommendations have been acted upon in developing MOUs and institutional and community relationships; 3) if plans have been tested in inclusive tabletops and/or exercises ; 4) if any emergency events have occurred in which the plans have been implemented; and 5) how well the plan worked (or didn’t), and what steps are in place to improve any problems detected. Applicability of Results to Practice As described throughout the technical approach, in particular in Tasks 2 through 5, 7 and 9, the study team is very focused on delivering a practical and useful Guide for transportation and emergency managers, to serve in many cases as a companion guide to TCRP A-33, Communication with Vulnerable Populations. We know that, in most cases, “smaller is better”, and in addition to the full report and succinct Guide, may develop pocket guides for even wider distribution (if feasible and recommended by users). Our team is committed to action, as is demonstrated in our collective histories, and we are passionate about the importance of this project, and the need for widespread, practical advice that can be acted upon with the limited resources available to most transportation and emergency managers. Expected audience: See Task Descriptions and Outreach Plan, below. Outreach Plan Background While NCHRP products are developed to be useful to practitioners, they are not always utilized in their day-to-day work. There are many reasons why practitioners at transportation agencies may not utilize NCHRP products, but one of the more common complaints is that they did not know the product existed. Another reason involves a lack of practical “how to use” instructions regarding the use of the product. The Berger Team assembled for this contract represents not only emergency management and transportation practitioners with “in-the-field” experience and research expertise, but also connections to numerous venues of outreach to emergency management agencies and transportation agencies that will provide immediate, credible access to many professional organizations to which practitioners commonly look for the latest tools and techniques. We will distribute pre-approved fliers and other information about the project at conferences and other venues which we attend as part of our regular business. We will offer to make presentations as part of committee and member duties (for example, TRB committees often include brief presentations, outside the normal “paper” process). Our team collectively includes access to the following contacts and resources to bring to this task. We would not expect or commit to attending all conferences, but would submit information such as display fliers to as many as possible, and for those team members are already attending (or hosting), we would “get the word out” via pre-approved

NCHRP 20-59 (32) A Transportation Guide to All-Hazards Evacuation Final Report 180 Access to the EMFORUM The EMForum was established in 1998 as a primary outreach tool of the Emergency Information Infrastructure Project (EIIP). A web-based forum on topics of interest to Emergency Managers and others is held twice a month, usually on Wednesdays. Depending on the topic, 40 to 100 or more will be on the line. Transcripts are archived and referenced regularly, ranging from 500 to 2,500 downloads per topic. Recently, the live recordings have been archived, and are being downloaded in increasing numbers. The EMForum maintains an active list of over 3,000, but its outreach goes far beyond that through its partner lists of over 200 organizations. The EMForum has hosted previous events on special needs and vulnerable populations, and usually can schedule an event with two to three months’ notice. We have been in contact with the organizers who are pleased to bring new topics such as this to their audience. fliers, individual conversations, committee member advisories, panel discussions and eventually paper presentations. Emergency Management and Transportation Team members Brian Wolshon and John Renne organized the First Annual Emergency Evacuation Conference in New Orleans in February, 2010. The conference is organized by the Stephenson Disaster Management Institute and the Gulf Coast Research Center for Evacuation and Transportation Resiliency, both at Louisiana State University and the University of New Orleans. The second biennial conference is scheduled in New Orleans in 2012. The website address is http://www.nationalevacuationconference.org/ Special topics of discussion at the conference included: • Addressing the challenges faced by special needs populations during disasters • Improvements in evacuation planning and modeling • National evacuation policy development Additional venues for outreach include: • FEMA and FEMA-sponsored workshops, in particular a developing relationship with Marcie Roth, Senior Advisor on Disability Issues for FEMA and Doc Lumpkins. Anticipate FEMA comments on the Guide and Draft Final Report • Access to the Lessons Learned Information Sharing (LLIS) • Access to the EMFORUM (see sidebar) • All-Hazards Consortium (mid-Atlantic) • Association Meetings – National Emergency Management Association (NEMA) and others • International Association of Emergency Managers • Florida Governor’s Hurricane Conference (attendance is >2,000) partners include state EM, local EMs, the American Red Cross, The National Weather Service • Local states’ emergency management association annual meetings • Florida hosts a large “people with disabilities” conference in Orlando every June. • Suggest League of Cities; County Association meetings • The National Association of Regional Councils convened a Transportation and Evacuation Planning Workshop on Monday, June 1, 2009 in Denver, CO as part of its 43rd Annual Conference. It is anticipated that a presentation on the Guide would be a welcome addition to a future Workshop. • All-Hazards Forum- Denver

NCHRP 20-59 (32) A Transportation Guide to All-Hazards Evacuation Final Report 181 Access to TRB Committees, Task Force and Subcommittees. The Berger Team collectively includes the following: • Chairman/founder and two additional long-time active members (since 2003) of the Emergency Evacuation Subcommittee • Active members of the Environmental Justice Committee • Active member of the Intermodal Passenger Transfer Facilities Committee • Active member of the Intercity Passenger Rail Committee • One active member of the Public Involvement Committee. These individuals all have influence over workshop topics for the annual meeting as well as conference sessions and themes for “calls for papers”. Over 10,000 transportation professionals attend the annual TRB conference and therefore this provides a remarkable opportunity for outreach and dissemination. The Emergency Evacuation Subcommittee supports an annual poster session or full paper session that can be utilized to focus on strategies to evaluate multifaceted aspects of evacuation and consequently inform practitioners and academics of the availability of the guidebook. Access to the Association Metropolitan Planning Organizations (AMPO) The Berger Team includes a member of AMPO’s technical committee, with access to reach out to all MPOs through AMPO dissemination channels. • APTA Safety and Security Committees (there are several) will want to be involved. Also, APTA has a strategic partnership with TRB that can be tapped. A particular emphasis during Phase II will be working with the APTA and FEMA Resource Typing Committees, to try to advance the typing of transportation resources dedicated to moving people. (Currently only ambulances are typed.) • The Center for Urban Transportation Research (CUTR) will also provide an excellent means of dissemination; the Team has several good contacts within CUTR The FTA uses the Volpe Center in Cambridge, MA to disseminate its literature and programs on safety, security and emergency preparedness All of the above-described venues can be utilized to ensure that “the word” gets out about the availability of the toolkit. Not only can these venues be used for outreach and dissemination, but opportunities exist to provide the “how to use” instructions sought by practitioners. Many of our project team members are asked to organize workshops and conference sessions, and to be presenters. Our project team can leverage their access and credibility with these organizations to promote opportunities for peer-to-peer learning and information exchange. Also, FHWA could sponsor a webinar on the topic to promote awareness of the availability of the toolkit. Community and Advocate Outreach In addition to soliciting advice and input during the development of the Guide, once the Guide is complete, we will send email announcements to a full range of agencies involved with the aged and with persons with disabilities. The purpose of the announcement will be to alert the organizations and their

NCHRP 20-59 (32) A Transportation Guide to All-Hazards Evacuation Final Report 182 constituents to the existence of this resource. If they desire, as an extension of their personal preparedness efforts and in coordination with local agencies, they and their constituents can begin to inquire as to the progress of their local transportation and emergency plan, and where feasible (health permitting), volunteer to participate in planning and exercises. Such grass-roots efforts are likely to increase the effectiveness and impetus for action for the local transportation or emergency management plan “champion” or assigned lead agency. Representative organizations with broad-based constituencies include, but are not limited to: • CDC/Public Health (The public health community has recognized transportation has a huge issue.) The CDC Healthy Aging Program (HAP) has a website (http://www.cdc.gov/aging/). HAP issued two critical issue briefs in 2007 on disaster planning for older adults (CDC’s Disaster Planning Goal: Protect Vulnerable Older Adults and Disaster Planning Tips for Older Adults and their Families). Notice of the toolkit could also be placed on the CDC Public Health and Aging Listserv. Likewise CDC’s Prevention Research Centers Healthy Aging Network (PRC- HAN) and through key CDC partners (e.g., National Assn of Chronic Disease Directors, National Assn of City & County Health Officials). • AoA/Aging Network Contacts with the U.S. Administration on Aging can encourage AoA to help disseminate information about the toolkit through its website, electronic mailing lists and newsletter. • Administration on Aging, Emergency Assistance Guide 2006, http://www.aoa.gov/PRESS/preparedness/preparedness.asp#guide • AARP Public Policy Institute. We Can Do Better: Lessons Learned for Protecting Older Persons in Disasters, http://assets.aarp.org/rgcenter/il/better.pdf • National Association of Area Agencies on Aging (a network of the 600+ local agencies authorized to carry out the Older Americans Act and protect older adults). Previous conference: July 19-22, 2009, Minneapolis, MN, http://www.n4a.org/training-events/annual-conference/. Call for sessions includes: Improving the Aging Services Network’s Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Response. • American Society on Aging/National Council on Aging (about 4,000 aging services providers attend their annual conference), next conference is March 16-20, 2010. • American Geriatrics Society (group of geriatricians with broad interests in older adults). Next conference: April 2010. • Community Transportation Association of America. Previous conference: May 31-June 5, 2009, http://web1.ctaa.org/webmodules/webarticles/anmviewer.asp?a=922 There were workshops on emergency management/evacuation. • Alzheimer’s Association has interest in protecting older adults during disasters. Public Policy Forums held in mid-March conf. in DC, http://www.alz.org/news_and_events_upcoming_events.asp#conferences • Nursing Home and Other Senior Residences (since Katrina, they have been particularly sensitized to the disaster transportation issues) • American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging (an association of people running nursing homes and continuing care retirement communities, all of which need evacuation plans for their older residents). Next conference: mid-April 2010; Updating Your Disaster Plan, http://www.aahsa.org/qualityfirst/resources/governance_accountability/security_emergency_man agement/documents/Updating_Disaster_Plan.pdf • American Health Care Association. Planning for a Pandemic/Epidemic Disaster: Caring for Persons with Cognitive Impairment, http://www.ahca.org/flu/pandemic_dementia_care.pdf • Assisted Living Federation of America, Disaster Planning Guide & Toolkit, http://www.alfa.org/i4a/pages/Index.cfm?pageID=3648

NCHRP 20-59 (32) A Transportation Guide to All-Hazards Evacuation Final Report 183 • National Long-Term Care Ombudsman Resource Center, The Role of Long-Term Care Ombudsmen in Nursing Home Closures and Natural Disasters, http://www.ltcombudsman.org//uploads/OmbinNHclosures.pdf • NCCNHR (National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care), Emergency Preparedness: Questions Consumers Should Ask, http://www.nccnhr.org/public/245_1268_12002.cfm Federal: • Nursing Home Emergency Preparedness and Response during Recent Hurricanes, http://oig.hhs.gov/oei/reports/oei-06-06-00020.pdf • Disaster Preparedness: Limitations in Federal Evacuation Assistance for Health Facilities Should be Addressed, http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d06826.pdf Disability Community: • American Red Cross Preparing for Disaster for People with Disabilities and other Special Needs, http://www.redcross.org/services/disaster/0,1082,0_603_,00.html • Project Action (In association with Easter Seals) • Dept. of Education, National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research, Emergency Management Research and People With Disabilities: A Resource Guide, http://www.ed.gov/rschstat/research/pubs/guide-emergency-management-pwd.pdf • HHS Office on Disability, ODinfo@hhs.gov. • National Center for Accessible Transportation at Oregon State University • Interagency Committee on Disability Research, http://www.icdr.us/ • National Council on Disability, http://www.ncd.gov/ • National Organization on Disability, Hilary Styron, StyronH@nod.org, Telephone: 202-293- 5960; 202-293-5968 (TTY), www.nod.org; News Articles on Disability and Emergency Preparedness, http://www.nod.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=feature.showFeature&FeatureID=1142&C:\CFusion8\ verity\Data\dummy.txt Other Resources: • Administration on Aging, Emergency Preparedness Manual • CDC, http://www.bt.cdc.gov/ • Center for Disability Issues and the Health Professions, Western University of Health Sciences, Evacuation Preparedness Guide, http://www.cdihp.org/evacuation/toc.html • Corporation for National and Community Service, Disaster Preparedness and Response, http://www.nationalservice.gov/about/focus_areas/disaster.asp • Deaflink – national organization for remote ASL services • DisabilityPreparedness.gov • DOT Emergency Transportation site, Emergency Preparedness and Individuals with Disabilities, http://www.dotcr.ost.dot.gov/asp/emergencyprep.asp • FEMA Comprehensive Preparedness Guide 301 For Special Needs Populations, http://www.fema.gov/news/newsrelease.fema?id=45435 • HHS Office of Disability, Aging, and Long-Term Care Policy (DALTCP) is charged with developing, analyzing, evaluating, and coordinating HHS policies and programs which support the independence, productivity, health, and long-term care needs of children, working age adults, and older persons with disabilities. http://aspe.hhs.gov/_/office_specific/daltcp.cfm

NCHRP 20-59 (32) A Transportation Guide to All-Hazards Evacuation Final Report 184 • HHS has Community Planning Toolkit for State Emergency Preparedness Managers with section on transportation – Includes individuals who cannot drive due to the presence of a disability or who do not have a vehicle and will require transportation support for successful evacuation. Support may include making accessible vehicles available (e.g., lift and/or ramp equipped or vehicle suitable for transporting individuals who use oxygen), or knowledge of how/where to access mass transportation to assist in evacuation, http://www.hhs.gov/od/disabilitytoolkit/index.html • Medline, www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/disasterpreparationandrecovery.html • National Center for Disaster Preparedness, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, Emergency Preparedness: Addressing the Needs of People with Disabilities (p. 19 on emergency transportation), http://www.ncdp.mailman.columbia.edu/files/DISABILITIES.pdf • National Fire Protection Association, Emergency Evacuation Planning Guide for People with Disabilities, http://www.nfpa.org/assets/files/PDF/Forms/EvacuationGuide.pdf • National Library of Medicine, Special Populations: Emergency and Disaster Preparedness http://sis.nlm.nih.gov/outreach/specialpopulationsanddisasters.html • Ready America website, http://www.ready.gov/america/getakit/seniors.html • Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center on Accessible Public Transportation http://www.rercapt.org/ • State Independent Living Centers and Centers for Independent Living – in each state and in many communities throughout the country, some variation in names – excellent resources as liaisons to other organizations • “United We Ride” CCAM initiative and resources, such as State Human Service Transportation Coordinating Councils Overview and State Profiles, unitedweride.gov • U.S. Access Board Resources on Emergency Evacuation and Disaster Preparedness http://www.access-board.gov/evac.htm • World Institute on Disability, http://www.wid.org/ In addition to the venues of outreach and dissemination described, the Berger Team will reach out to appropriate sections of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), as both of these agencies have taken leadership roles in developing guidance materials on reaching out to underserved populations. The Office of Environmental Justice within EPA is a logical starting point for outreach opportunities. The project team also welcomes recommendations from the Project Panel.

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