EMERGENCY PHONE SYSTEM TOO COSTLY

PennDOT's Bureau of Maintenance has ordered a dismantling of the Emergency Telephone System on Interstate 80, citing sharply reduced use and the high cost per call as reasons for the move. The system, which includes 362 roadside telephones in six counties, was installed as an experiment in 1968 when I-80 was still only partially completed. State Police and PennDOT records show that in its early years of operation, the network averaged about 4500 calls per year, mostly for vehicle service and information. That figure dropped to 2341 in 1975 and to 1385 for the first eight months of 1976, including only two ambulance calls. "The entire network costs us about $85,181 per year--money that could be better spent on fixing potholes. The Secretary of Transportation has ordered us to cut all waste, and we consider this a waste," said director of maintenance Louis G. O'Brien. The system is slated for total elimination by December 31, 1976. /Author/

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/oclc/1519687
• Publication Date: 1976-12

Media Info

• Pagination: p. 21
• Serial:
  • Better Roads
  • Volume: 46
  • Issue Number: 12
  • Publisher: James Informational Media, Incorporated
  • ISSN: 0006-0208
  • Serial URL: http://www.betterroads.com

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Costs; Emergencies; Highways; Roadside; Telephone
• Subject Areas: Finance; Highways; Operations and Traffic Management;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00148418
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Mar 15 1977 12:00AM