In the autumn of 2010, Dr. Scott Norwood[1], the then Emergency and Homeland Security Preparedness Manager at the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro), approached Mr. Nicholas Lowe[2] of the California Emergency Management Agency (Cal EMA) with the idea of a mutual support program among public transportation agencies that he had been conceiving for a number of years. Norwood’s original concept was for a localized partnership with Metro’s neighboring transportation agencies that would allow them to share buses and potentially run each other’s routes in emergency situations. Lowe recognized the concept as an opportunity to build a more holistic mutual aid/assistance program for public transportation agencies like those that exist in other public safety and utility disciplines.  Norwood and Lowe forged a partnership that would ultimately lead from theory to reality a few years later.

 

After significant research and conversations with other metropolitan regions (e.g., CA Bay Area), Norwood and Lowe were unable to identify any other mutual aid/assistance programs for public transportation in the United States. Recognizing this would be a first-of-its-kind grassroots effort, they sought guidance from the most similar past effort they could identify: the California Water/Wastewater Agency Response Network (Cal WARN). After gathering appropriate data and charting a path forward, Norwood and Lowe initiated the buildout effort.  To be successful, they realized the program would need to: 1) have broad involvement from transit agencies; 2) build upon past successful programs and efforts; 3) respect existing protocols and standards (e.g., Standardized Emergency Management System, National Incident Management System); 4) involve emergency management counterparts from the beginning; and 5) sustain momentum throughout the development stage.

 

As a result, the first step was to roll-out the concept to public transportation agencies in the four county region (Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, and San Bernardino) as a target/pilot audience. Norwood and Lowe targeted reputable public transportation supporters and industry leaders to involve early. While a roll-out workshop was in the works, they obtained sponsorships from Foothill Transit, Long Beach Transit, Omnitrans, Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA), SunLine Transit Agency, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department/Emergency Management Division, and the Los Angeles County Office of Emergency Management. Recognizing the value and opportunity, most of those agencies went beyond sponsorship to commit personnel and resources to join a Steering Committee to assist with the long-term build out of TransMAC.

 

The roll-out workshop was held in October 2011 and included representatives from more than 30 transit agencies from the pilot region. Building upon a successful roll-out and a large amount of positive feedback, the Steering Committee then established three sub-committees (Operations, Legal/Finance/ Administration, and Emergency Management Subcommittees) with membership from the diverse participants to begin developing a draft agreement. Not wanting to rebuild the wheel, the Steering Committee reviewed the Cal WARN agreement, the California Civil Defense and Master Mutual Aid Agreement, and an example agreement from the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) for ideas. Appropriate parts were taken from each agreement, additional sections that were needed were identified, and each was assigned to a subcommittee to review and make applicable to the State and public transportation discipline.

 

One year later, a draft agreement was in place and was released for comment at the second all-stakeholder workshop in October 2012. A tabletop exercise was held to put the draft agreement to the test in March 2013. In addition, the Steering Committee received nearly 150 comments on the agreement during the review period. The results of the exercise and each received comment were collectively adjudicated by the Steering Committee. Additional research and interviews were conducted as needed.  The agreement was ultimately reorganized and major edits were made. The agreement was then issued to all stakeholders for one final review. The few resulting comments were then adjudicated by the Steering Committee and the agreement was finalized.  In May 2013, the agreement began being signed by the Steering Committee members and was released to all public transportation agencies in the pilot region and beyond for their membership in this first-ever public transportation emergency compact.

In 2013 TransMAC was awarded the California Emergency Services Association (CESA) Southern Section Silver Award.

 

Concept of TransMAC:

TransMAC was originally conceived to incorporate the regions’ agencies involved in all manner of ground transportation in order to strengthen the overall resilience of the region in times of emergencies and disasters. Although it was originally established through the efforts of the region’s public transportation agencies, it was always intended to facilitate transportation support to the public, by enhancing the strength of every entity involved in supporting regional resilience. Transportation is critical to the community and is the key to recovery after any emergency. Transportation provides the means to reestablish the economy of the region as well as providing the psychological benefit of allowing a damaged community to begin to feel a sense of normalcy and empowerment by allowing people who had been harmed to begin to move around again. It is this philosophy that establishes transportation’s critical role.

When TransMAC was established, as stated above, both Orange County Sheriff’s Department Office of Emergency Management and the Los Angeles County Office of Emergency Management regularly attended meetings in an advisory capacity and were most helpful in providing their respective insights into what the transportation discipline might be able to expect in order to determine how best to construct our mutual support system. These agencies, since they do not provide public transportation, were not eligible for voting membership, but rather would rely upon TransMAC member agencies to accomplish their respective missions in times of crisis.    

 

 

[1] Dr. Norwood is currently an independent consultant

[2] Mr. Lowe is currently President/CEO of CPARS consulting