# APPENDIX C: DEFINITIONS DEVELOPMENT

The following descriptions regarding how the definitions were developed
are not necessary for the *TMOT Guidelines* user who is interested in
simply writing position descriptions for TMC staffing. The information
necessary to create position descriptions is found in Sections 4 and 5.

### Development of the Transportation Management Operations Technician (TMOT) Definition

Since the first North American freeway management centers opened in the
late 1960s, transportation professionals have referred to people who
worked at these "control centers" simply as "operators." Unfortunately,
in the human resource circles of the information processing industry at
large, the term "operator" is most commonly used to describe primarily
clerical positions such as computer operators for data entry and keypad
operators. When a TMC supervisor asks a human resources expert to
classify a "TMC Operator", the base level of knowledge, skill, ability,
education, and related compensation level is likely to be
underestimated. The result is a TMC that does not achieve its objectives
due to an under-compensated and under-qualified staff.

Attempts to resolve this problem in the past have lead to TMC managers
utilizing titles such as "Transportation Management Technician," and
specialty titles such as "Traffic Information Coordinator." Those who
have utilized these titles report having succeeded in obtaining a better
qualified and compensated staff. A good example is the Montgomery
County, Maryland, TMC, where the transportation supervisor at the time,
Mr. Gene Donaldson, advocated the "Traffic Management Technician"
titles. These titles are useful, and could serve as a general title for
the purpose of these *TMOT Guidelines*. The Traffic Management
Technician title is an improvement on "TMC Operator," even though the
word "technician" may imply to the human resources professional more of
a "hardware" installation, troubleshooting, or repair KSA capability set
than may be required to perform in the typical TMC operations position.

The title of Transportation Management Operations Technician (TMOT) was
developed for these guidelines to connote that the technical
capabilities required are to be applied to operational tasks in a
traffic management setting, rather than maintenance tasks. Adopting the
TMOT nomenclature in the transportation community may result in more
consistent communication of staffing needs to human resources and civil
service officials.

### Development of the TMC Function Definition

A search of existing research literature related to Transportation
Management Center (TMC) operations shows that there is no consistently
utilized definition of the term "function" contained in the TMC related
transportation research literature. In fact, practitioners use the words
"function" and "task" quite loosely.

The general definition of the word "function" is "the action for which a
person or thing is specially fitted or used or for which a thing exists:
Purpose."[^1] There are two key words in this literal definition that
will aid in the development of a contextual definition for TMC
function: 1. "Action," and 2. "Purpose." In TMC operations, implied
action and purpose in describing functions is very common.

According to the literal definition, the characterization of an
activity, or group of activities, as a function should contain two
parts, a verb that conveys action being taken, and a word or phrase that
conveys the purpose of the action. A good example of common action verbs
used to describe TMC functions are contained in the following table:

Table c-1: Action Verbs Used in Representative Research on Functions

  ----------------------------------- -----------------------------------
  Publication Number FHWA-RD-95-181   DTFH61-92-C-00094 Paper G.1

  Detect, sense, receive, verify,     Assess, select, identify,
  assess, anticipate, identify,       determine, receive, provide,
  predict, select, determine,         control, perform, store, predict,
  monitor, post, control, provide,    monitor, verify, transmit, store,
  formulate, issue, transmit, store,  post, issue, implement, verify,
  retrieve, perform, implement,       maintain, develop, anticipate, and
  maintain, and coordinate.           retrieve.
  ----------------------------------- -----------------------------------

The similarity of these lists is attributable to commonality in the way
researchers characterize activities of human interaction with real-time
operational computer systems.

The "purpose" portion of a function's description is a more difficult to
identify correctly. Incident management is a TMC function. The function
could be more correctly identified as "Perform Incident Management."
Another good example of terminology being somewhat inaccurate, albeit
readily accepted, is to say that "ramp metering" is a function. Most
transportation engineers know that the purpose of metering ramps is to
improve mainline flow conditions and reduce accidents; however, this
purpose is not literally conveyed by the description. "Meter Freeway
Entrance Ramps" is a function description that is more precise.
Unfortunately, "ramp metering" is not just a function, it is also a TMC
sub-system or market package in the ITS industry. Precision is
frequently sacrificed for brevity, especially when the functions are
described in tabular text format, which is most often the case. "Traffic
Signal Control" is essentially the same as "Control Traffic Signals to
Prevent Collisions and Minimize Delay."

An example of this kind of abbreviation of function descriptions appears
in [Traffic Management Center Functions]{.underline}, NCHRP Report 270,
June 1998. Table 4 on page 30 lists the TMC functions under
consideration as follows:

Table c-2: NCHRP 270 TMC Function Descriptions

  --------------------- ---------------------- ---------------------------
  Surveillance          Incident Management    Public Information
                                               Dissemination

  Private Information   Interagency            Environmental Monitoring
  Dissemination         Information Sharing    

  Special Event         Coordination with      HAZMAT
  Management            Emergency Agencies     

  Emergency Management  HOV Operations         Planned Track/Lane Closure

  Ramp Metering         Traffic/Track Signal   Lane Signal Control
                        Control                

  Toll Management       Risk/Liability         Data Fusion
                        Management             
  --------------------- ---------------------- ---------------------------

The connection between these functions and the purpose, being the
overall objectives or mission of the center, is supplied by the reader,
and not described, even implicitly, in these function descriptions. In
most instances, this is not a problem. In the development of the TMOT
Requirements Matrices for this report, definitions were needed to test
whether an activity was a function, or a task, to properly describe the
activity in the matrices. [Traffic Management Center
Functions]{.underline}, NCHRP Report 270, on page 22 states as follows:

"Transportation Management Centers perform three basic functions:
gathering, synthesizing, and disseminating traffic and travel condition
information."

This classic definition is the most basic elemental functional
description, and is common to almost all ITS system and TMC design
processes. There is no need to change it. This definition is consistent
with the *TMOT Guidelines* definition of TMC function, as it reflects
input, process, and output. The definitions used in this report are an
expansion upon this basic theme, to provide a way to capture the
distinctions between functions and tasks. It is not necessary for
practitioners in the transportation industry to start referring to ramp
metering as "Meter Freeway Entrance Ramps". The context in which a term
like this is used will provide the distinction as to whether a system or
a function is being described.

### Development of the TMOT Task Definition

A dictionary definition of the word "task" is "a usually assigned piece
of work often to be finished within a certain time."[^2] There are three
key phrases in this literal definition that will aid in the development
of a contextual definition for TMC TMOT Tasks: 1. "usually assigned," 2.
"piece of work," and 3. "finished within a certain time." Lists of TMC
operator tasks readily found in existing transportation research
literature are generally not consistent with this or any other
definition, and too often the terms "function" and "task" are used
interchangeably. The key distinction between functions and tasks can be
derived from the task definition. By definition, a "function" is an
on-going process, where as a "task" is a discrete entity, with a
beginning and an end. Literally, the function is the "work" and the task
is the "piece of work."

Operator task descriptions rely very heavily upon the same action words,
especially "receive," "assess," "monitor," "transmit," "issue," and
"select." The task descriptions almost always include the "thing"
involved, namely the item acted upon (e.g., traffic detector data).

The state of the practice in definition of operator tasks is also highly
inconsistent and arbitrary, in that review of any extensive list will
lead to exceptions to this rule. Task descriptions can easily be found
that are too general "monitor traffic conditions" or too specific
"override restrictive metering rate at saturated ramp."

In the context of developing operator tasks upon which to base
knowledge, skill, and ability assessments for operators, a determination
must be made as to the appropriate level of specificity required. Every
function described for use in the study must have at least one task, and
every task must contribute to at least one, and quite possible more than
one, function.

Some of the Operator tasks identified in these *TMOT Guidelines* will
differ from those commonly found in the literature regarding TMC
Operations. As an example, the knowledge, skill and ability required to
control a pan, tilt, and zoom video camera remotely through a software
interface, and to understand the orientation of the image viewed and the
content thereof, should be a required TMOT capability. However, it is
rarely, if ever, described in existing operator position descriptions.
This is partly because "Video Surveillance" is not a popularly
referenced function, and should not be defined as such because the sole
purpose is to support other functions such as incident management or the
metering of ramps (for visual queue monitoring). The ability to compose
a Dynamic Message Sign message using a user interface, and to understand
the implications of sending the message to the sign, is very common in
TMCs, but rarely included in position descriptions for the same reason.
The ability to master and utilize technologies in these centers is
absolutely critical to meeting TMC objectives, but is very frequently
not identified in position descriptions. These activities are defined
herein as TMOT tasks.

Adopting these definitions provides some structure to the discussion of
functions and tasks central to developing TMC operator requirements
matrices on which to develop position descriptions or aid in TMC design.
These definitions will, however, eventually lead to changes in how we
talk about TMC operations. As an example, it sounds perfectly reasonable
to say, "An operator performs certain functions within the TMC." Using
the literal definitions in these *TMOT Guidelines*, this statement
becomes incorrect! A function is an on-going purpose. An operator
performs tasks (not functions) congruent with this purpose. The reason
it is important to make this distinction is to provide a conceptual
hierarchy by which to "break down" a TMC operation into small enough
descriptions of activities so that the staffing requirements can be
developed based upon what the operator will really be asked to do as
part of his or her job.

### Human Resource Related Definitions

The definitions of knowledge, skill, and ability (KSA), and the use of
the terminology of "entry level" and "full performance" are generally
consistent with definitions accepted by human resources professionals.

[^1]: \"Function\" Merriam-Webster Online: Collegiate Dictionary. 2001.
    http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary.htm (29 Nov. 2001).

[^2]: \"Task\" Merriam-Webster Online: Collegiate Dictionary. 2001.
    http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary.htm (29 Nov. 2001).