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9/14/2009 CONTACT: Franz Brotzen New Rice University report shows Houston SafeClear program saves money, reduces collisions A new Rice University study shows that the city of Houston's SafeClear program to remove disabled vehicles resulted in 120 fewer auto accidents per month and a monthly cost savings of $4 million to the driving public. The study, "SafeClear Performance Report 2008," was co-authored by Robert Stein, Robert Dahnke and Benjamin Stevenson of Rice University and Tim Lomax of the Texas Transportation Institute. In January 2005, the city of Houston launched its SafeClear traffic incident management program. The program aimed to combat many of the problems that arose from the "free-for-all" that occurred as tow truck operators raced toward disabled vehicles on Houston freeways. By improving tow operator response (dividing Houston freeways into segments with assigned operators responsible for specific sections), policymakers believed that they could reduce collisions. "Our report confirms initial analysis from 2006 that showed that the SafeClear program works," said Stein, professor of political science. "Nearly all of the goals of the program have been met, and it is performing very well." Key findings of the report: • Program performance metrics are consistent with those of previous years. • With regard to performance metrics, the program is meeting the majority of established goals; however, there is room for improvement – in 2008, 89.8 percent of tows were responded to within six minutes, just short of the 90 percent goal. • There is evidence that tow operators adjust their behavior to the price of gasoline by patrolling less as fuel becomes more costly. • The SafeClear program continues to have an impact on reducing collisions on Houston-area freeways. • At an estimated cost of $34,000 per collision, the reduction of approximately 120 collisions per month attributed to the SafeClear program results in savings to the driving public of $4,080,000 per month (nearly $49 million per year). • Response time (how fast tow operators arrive at disabled vehicles) is correlated with the volume of collisions – a one-minute decrease in average response time yields approximately 80 fewer collisions per month. The "SafeClear Performance Report 2008" was presented to the Houston City Council at a public meeting Sept. 14. To read the study’s executive summary, visit: http://www.rice.edu/nationalmedia/multimedia/2009-09-14-SafeClearEx.pdf. To download the complete study, including graphs and charts, go here: http://www.rice.edu/nationalmedia/multimedia/2009-09-14-SafeClearReport.pdf. Media wishing to speak with Stein should contact Franz Brotzen at 713-348-6775 or franz.brotzen@rice.edu. Co-authors are Robert Dahnke and Benjamin Stevensen, research assistants at Rice’s Center for Civic Engagement, and Tim Lomax with Texas Transportation Institute at Texas A&M.
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