CHAPTER 3
Key Questions/Key Decisions
During emergencies, there are a series of decisions that must be made to assist a transportation organization in determining its responses to the events. These decisions range from policy and priority decisions that drive staffing and resource decisions to determining the triggers and timing of actions and addressing long-term impacts. Asking the right questions allows a transportation organization to make these key decisions within organizational and resource constraints and stay focused on quickly adapting. Asking the right questions also enhances the ability of the agency to withstand the short-term and long-term impacts of the event and facilitates collaboration.
Key Points on Service for People with Disabilities and Older Adults
Policy decisions include addressing eligibility qualifications and processes for providing service to people with disabilities. Changes in priorities and staffing may need to be made to support service for people with disabilities and older adults.
Resources and protective measures that respond to the emergency need to be compatible with the needs of people with disabilities and older adults; additional technologies [e.g., scheduling and dispatching software upgrades, interactive voice response (IVR) communication tools, surface cleaning machines] and measures may be necessary.
Key Decisions
Table 1 summarizes the types of decisions that need to be made, general questions to consider in this decision-making, and questions specific to people with disabilities and older adults. Organization areas that are critical in this decision-making are also listed.
Key Questions by Phase
Tables 2, 3, 4, and 5 each provide a decision-making matrix by emergency phase (organization preparedness, protection/mitigation, organization response, and organization recovery) that can assist transportation organizations in developing policies, strategies, and approaches to effectively address a pandemic while working within organizational and resource constraints.
Preparedness
During the preparedness phase of an emergency, planning is done to assess risks, potential impacts, and consequences and determine actions and resources that are required to address the emergency and recover from it. The results are often documented in emergency and continuity of service plans.
Table 1. Types of decisions and associated considerations for critical agency areas.
| Decision Types | General Questions to Consider | Questions to Consider Specific to People with Disabilities and Older Adults | Critical Organization Areas |
|---|---|---|---|
| Policy | Are there organization policies already established to address the situation? Or do additional organization policies need to be put in place? Are policies aligned with federal, state, and local policies, if necessary? Are communications protocols and information management in place, especially with health agencies and accessibility organizations? |
Can accessibility eligibility qualification continue as is? Does the process need to change? If so, how should accessibility confirmations be handled? | Human Resources, Finance, Continuity of Operations Plans (COOPs) |
| Priorities | What are the organization’s mission-essential functions? Do priorities need to change? How does the organization support community essential services? |
Are there additional essential functions necessary for people with disabilities and older adults? Do changes to priorities need to be made to ensure support for people with disabilities and older adults? |
Supply Chain, Community |
| Triggers | What are the criteria or trigger points for initiating specific actions or implementations? When should plans be implemented? When should staff restrictions or service reductions occur? |
Are there different trigger points for people with disabilities and older adults? Do implementation plans take into account the needs of people with disabilities and older adults? |
Agency Operations, COOP |
| Staffing | What are the essential staff roles? Is additional staff needed? How does the organization maintain the health and safety of staff? |
Is dedicated staff needed for people with disabilities and older adults? Are different procedures necessary to maintain the health and safety of staff who work with people with disabilities and older adults? |
All |
| Resources | Does the organization have adequate supplies to address response needs? Does the organization have technology in place to support the situation? |
Are additional supplies needed to address the needs of people with disabilities and older adults? Is technology compatible for people with disabilities and older adults? Is additional technology necessary? |
Management, Emergency Management |
| Timing | What is the estimated duration of the event? Are phased approaches possible? What are the elements in each phase? |
Are the phases consistent for all riders? If not, what elements need to be adjusted? | All |
| Finance | Are there budget issues to address? Are there opportunities available? |
Are there existing contracts that can be used to fund new services for people with disabilities and older adults? Are there additional funding opportunities for existing or new services for people with disabilities and older adults? |
Agency Operations, Finance |
| Decision Types | General Questions to Consider | Questions to Consider Specific to People with Disabilities and Older Adults | Critical Organization Areas |
|---|---|---|---|
| Other | Who are existing organization partners? Who else needs to be involved? Which new partnerships should be developed? |
Are there additional partners needed to address the service needs of people with disabilities and older adults? Are there community organizations focused on the needs of people with disabilities and older adults that the agency can support? |
All |
Table 2. Decision-making for transportation organization emergency preparedness.
| Considerations for Preparedness | Key Questions | Impacts on People with Disabilities and Older Adults | Critical Strategies |
|---|---|---|---|
| Disease Characteristics/Threats | What is the severity (e.g., virulence, duration)? How is it transmitted? What types of screening are available? |
Are there additional risks for immunocompromised riders? | Planning Safety Procedures Monitoring |
| Plans/Standard Operating Procedures | When should plans be reviewed? Do they need to be modified? Are there any concurrent risks or events to consider? |
Do the plans consider the needs of people with disabilities and older adults? | Planning Equity |
| Personnel | How and when should essential personnel be determined? Have the personnel been trained? |
Will there be requirements for dedicated personnel? | Planning Employee Training |
| Coordination | Are there state- or community-deemed essential functions? What information is needed? How do you communicate if things change? |
What information is available about the location and needs of people with disabilities and older adults in the organization’s service area? Are partnerships in place with accessibility, disability, and older adult organizations? |
Planning Relationships Communication |
Table 3. Decision-making for transportation organization protection/mitigation during an emergency.
| Considerations for Protection/Mitigation | Key Questions | Impacts on People with Disabilities and Older Adults | Critical Strategies |
|---|---|---|---|
| Preventive Countermeasures (e.g., PPE, barriers, social distancing, vaccination) | What types of protective measures are available? Is guidance for measures available? Is guidance agreed on by experts? Have the impacts of the protective measures been assessed? What mechanisms were used for assessment? |
Is guidance specific to people with disabilities and older adults available? Are there additional protective measures needed to help people with disabilities or older adults? What impact will protective measures have? |
Safety Procedures |
| Mitigation | What capabilities are available and effective? Have suppliers and alternative suppliers been identified? |
Are additional capabilities required to address mitigation for some riders? | Safety Procedures |
Protection/Mitigation
During an emergency, transportation organizations must consider the safety and well-being of their passengers and drivers, as well as other employees, and the vehicles and facilities critical to operations.
Response
During an emergency event, organizations need to safely continue transportation services to existing customers, especially services to people with disabilities and older adults, while providing new and temporary services as required. When unmet transportation needs are identified and requests for additional support are made by the community, the transportation organization must respond.
Recovery
During the recovery phase, organizations return to normal service after the emergency ends. Pandemics are long-term emergencies that may have many waves and unclear endings.
King County Metro in Seattle, Washington, developed the COVID-19 Response and Recovery Report, which details agency actions during the pandemic and analysis of their effectiveness (King County Metro, 2020). The report includes a summary table of phased durations of various action areas of pandemic response and agency goals supported by those actions, as shown in Figure 4.
Table 4. Decision-making for transportation organization emergency response.
| Considerations for Response | Key Questions | Impacts on People with Disabilities and Older Adults | Critical Strategies |
|---|---|---|---|
| Activation | What levels of activation are there (e.g., alert, monitor, activate)? What supplies are necessary? Are they in stock? When should plans be activated? |
Are there specific supplies required? | Planning Continuity of Services New and Temporary Services |
| Tracking/Monitoring | What information is required (e.g., data and reporting)? | Are data on people with disabilities and older adults in the service area available? If not, how can information be obtained? |
Planning Continuity of Services |
| Accessibility | Are there challenges with meeting accessibility requirements? What policies or procedures can be modified to meet accessibility requirements? |
Has the accessibility of people with disabilities and older adults been impacted? How can the impacts be mitigated? |
New and Temporary Services Continuity of Services Equity |
| Community | What community needs are impacted or unmet? Are agency resources available to support community needs? |
What needs for people with disabilities and older adults are impacted or unmet? Are agency resources available to support needs? |
New and Temporary Services Continuity of Services Equity |
| Communications | What messages need to be sent? To which audiences? Is there consistency in the messages being sent by other agencies and local/state government? |
What types of information are critically needed? What channels are effective in delivering messages to people with disabilities and older adults? |
Communications |
| Tools/Technology | What existing tools are available? What new/additional capabilities can be made available? |
What technology is available to support people with disabilities and older adults? Are additional tools or technology needed? |
All |
Table 5. Decision-making for transportation organization recovery from emergencies.
| Considerations for Recovery | Key Questions | Impacts on People with Disabilities and Older Adults | Critical Strategies |
|---|---|---|---|
| Restoration/Stabilization | What is the restoration of services? Is a phased approach available to return to “normal” services? Are there long-term impacts (e.g., on employees, ridership, available services, and funding)? |
Are there different timelines required for the restoration of some services? | Planning Continuity of Services |
| Public Confidence | What is needed to ensure confidence in the safety of the system and services? | Are additional actions necessary to ensure confidence in the safety of the system and services? | Safety Procedures Communications |
| Lessons Learned | Are lessons learned being captured? Are there enduring changes? How can lessons be institutionalized at an agency? |
Are there lessons specific to people with disabilities and older adults? | Planning Continuity of Services |
Figure 4. Summary of COVID-19 response and recovery actions from King County Metro.
