Final Scope

State DOTs have an increasing need for TSMO staff with a unique combination of information technology (IT) and operation technology (OT) expertise. Staffing for TSMO in this context supports the planning, design, maintenance, and operations for TSMO strategies, such as: network infrastructure and communications, intelligent transportation systems, and traffic management center operations.

The TSMO roles and responsibilities have historically blended IT and OT staff in multiple ways. Increasingly, IT and OT spheres are expanding and converging due to several developments including

• Increased utilization of shared communication networks;
• Use of more cloud-based software and services;
• Expanded cybersecurity needs requirements;
• Requirements for connected and automated vehicles and digital infrastructure.
• Increased need for remote access and control of TSMO software and field devices; and
• Greater inter-agency operations-related data sharing and data governance.

State DOTs have addressed the convergence of IT and OT staff support in various ways. For example, some agencies dedicate IT staff for TSMO and may embed them within traffic operations or TSMO units. At the other end of the spectrum, TSMO programs may be required to work through a separate IT agency which may have responsibility over multiple state business areas, with transportation being only one of many.

The objective of this synthesis is to document state DOT staffing models for TSMOs, including organizational structure, classification, funding sources, and skill sets.
Information to be gathered includes (but is not limited to):

• Required staff knowledge, skills, and abilities;
• Staffing models, including 24/7 staffing needs;
• Program funding source for staff;
• Authority for system operation between IT and OT responsibilities;
• Staff to evaluate emerging innovation;
• Staffing use of consultants/vendors; and
• Staffing for TSMO project phases (e.g., technology procurement, implementation, management, maintenance, and sunsetting).

Information will be gathered through a literature review, a survey of state DOTs, and follow-up interviews with selected DOTs for the development of case examples. Information gaps and suggestions for research to address those gaps will be identified.

Information Sources (Partial)

• FHWA IT-TSMO resources https://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/plan4ops/focus_areas/integrating/it.htm
• National Operations Center of Excellence Peer Exchange Summary (December 2023)
• 2024 TRB Annual Meeting IT-OT Workshop co-sponsored by several TRB Committees
• Upcoming NOCoE Peer exchange on IT and TSMO
• FHWA Traffic Management Pooled Fund Study underway on Staffing for Traffic Management Systems (report not yet available)

TRB Staff (consultant)
Sandra Q. Larson
Phone: 515-971-6329
Email: slarson@nas.edu

Meeting Dates
First Panel Meeting: February 25, 2025
Teleconference with Consultant: April 15, 2025, 3-4 pm eastern
Second Panel Meeting: December 2, 2025; Washington D.C. Keck Center

Topic Panel

Xiaoyu Skye Guo, District Department of Transportation

Susan Klasen, New Hampshire Department of
Transportation

Zhongren Wang, California Department of Transportation

Stephen Wardle, North Carolina Department of Transportation

Justin Aaron Yoh, Ohio Department of Transportation

Scott Zeller, Washington State Department of
Transportation

Jim Hunt, Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)