Sharing Traffic Control Plans Online


When sharing traffic control plans online there are a few things to consider.

  • Audience
  • Format
  • Potential uses
  • Accessibility

The Audience

When sharing a plan online consideration needs to be given to who will be viewing the plan. If it’s a governing authority, the ability to comment and provide feedback is useful. Someone potentially affected by a worksite may be interested in broad details (duration, location etc). Co Authors may wish to be able to edit and adjust the plan.

The Format

Should the plan be editable? Should it be easily printed? If you’re sharing with other plan editors, you may wish to distribute the native plan file, whereas other stakeholders in the project may be satisfied with a PDF

Potential Uses

Where will the plan you’re distributing be used? If it’s to display online, a flat image file may be appropriate. If further distribution and printing is likely, a PDF might be the best format. If the plan is going to be edited, a file format that retains edit capabilities is necessary

Accessibility

The advantage of distributing in the file format your traffic control plan software uses is that the plan can be edited by other people. Not all viewers have their own traffic control plan software though, so in those instances a more portable format like PDF is required.

With those factors in mind, the best tools for sharing plans online should include the following features:

  • Ability to distribute plans in portable formats like PDF, and native application file formats
  • Granular access control – the ability to control who can view the plan, and whether they can edit, comment or simply view
  • Interact directly with the software used to create the plans