LEE'S SUMMIT, Mo. - September 27, 2005, marks the one-year anniversary of the public
launch of the Kansas City Scout traffic management system. The Kansas and Missouri
departments of transportation will acknowledge the one-year milestone that day at
a 10:30 a.m. press conference inside Scout's Traffic Operations Center located at
600 Northeast Colbern Road, Lee's Summit.
The Scout system began limited operations in January 2004 with 75 miles of coverage
on portions of Interstates 70, 435, 35 and a handful of other Kansas and Missouri
freeways. KDOT and MoDOT publicly launched the fully implemented system September
27, 2004.
Since Scout began its maiden operations it has expanded services -- including it's
recent transition to operating seven days a week, 24 hours a day, and during holidays.
Scout system operators monitor freeway conditions with closed-circuit television
cameras and traffic detectors. Those devices help operators determine traffic flow
and the location of incidents such as an accident. Operators also post messages
on Scout's electronic freeway signs to notify travelers about traffic conditions
ahead of them and send updated traveler information to the Scout web site: www.kcscout.net.