Just over a year ago, MoDOT entered into a partnership with the Missouri Motor Carriers Association to promote the Highway Watch program within MoDOT. Since then over 1,300 MoDOT employees have been trained in the Highway Watch program and another 550 have chosen to join the program.

“Who better to keep an eye on the highways than the people who are responsible for the system?,” says Don Hillis, director of System Management at MoDOT.

The Highway Watch program, sponsored by the Transportation Security Administration, is yet another tool to increase safety and help in the war against terrorism. With millions of highway miles, numerous bridges, overpasses and other potential terrorist targets in the United States, a nationwide program was needed to help transportation workers protect these resources.

What may seem harmless on its own could be a key piece of information on a larger scale that could help prevent something bad from happening. Transportation workers, commercial and public truck and bus drivers, and other highway sector professionals are being trained in this program across the country.

The Missouri Motor Carriers Association contacted MoDOT last year to participate in the program. Initially, the Motor Carrier Services inspectors were trained and then MoDOT trainers. Since then, numerous MoDOT employees have been trained in the program.

Besides promoting safety, this 30-minute training has other objectives. The program can be used to report safety issues. Often when in other areas, even MoDOT workers aren’t sure who to report the safety issue to. With this program, they can call and the issue will be taken care of.

The program teaches participants how to protect all our bridges, tunnels, and other potential targets; provides highway security data for sharing and analysis, and promotes important safe driving skills and habits. The program also improves coordination between local, state and federal emergency management, public safety, and law-enforcement officials.

The training is available on the computer through the public drive as a self-running program. After completing the training and registering, participants receive a unique id number that they use to contact a call center to report a highway incident or condition. The call center then routes the call to the appropriate response agency.

All districts have trainers available, and anyone wishing to participate in the program should notify their supervisor.