How the D.C. Department of Public Works Got More Operational Efficiencies Out of their Street Sweeping Program
Company Size
1,000+
Region
- America
Country
- United States
Product
- RouteSmart for ArcGIS
- RouteSmart Technologies
Tech Stack
- Route Optimization Software
- GIS Data Integration
Implementation Scale
- Enterprise-wide Deployment
Impact Metrics
- Cost Savings
- Environmental Impact Reduction
- Productivity Improvements
Technology Category
- Analytics & Modeling - Predictive Analytics
- Functional Applications - Fleet Management Systems (FMS)
Applicable Industries
- Cities & Municipalities
- Recycling & Waste Management
Applicable Functions
- Facility Management
- Logistics & Transportation
Use Cases
- Fleet Management
- Process Control & Optimization
Services
- Software Design & Engineering Services
- System Integration
About The Customer
The D.C. Department of Public Works (DCDPW) is responsible for the District’s environmental services, solid waste management, and parking enforcement. They manage one of the largest mechanical street sweeping programs in the country for a city of its size. The department faces unique challenges due to the complex layout of Washington, D.C., which includes traffic circles, lane restrictions, and direction changes based on the time of day. These factors make it difficult to maintain efficient and effective street cleaning operations. The DCDPW's mission is to keep the streets clean while also managing other critical public services, making operational efficiency a top priority.
The Challenge
As anyone who’s driven the unique streets of the nation’s capital can attest to, Washington, D.C. can be a complex city to navigate. Traffic circles, lane restrictions and even direction changes based on time of day are all factors to consider. As the organization responsible for the District’s environmental services, solid waste management and parking enforcement, the D.C. Department of Public Works (DCDPW) faces these challenges every day – especially when it comes to keeping the streets clean. D.C.’s mechanical street sweeping program is one of the largest in the country for a city its size. However, the program was operating with 15-year-old routes that had been manually created and expanded over the years.
The Solution
In 2006, DCDPW launched a three-phase initiative to revamp and streamline their street sweeper routes. Phase one was a situational overview, during which the team set benchmarks and chose equipment. Route optimization software from RouteSmart Technologies was chosen to implement phase two, which focused on determining and creating routes and schedules. Finally, phase three was where the rubber hit the road, literally – the reassigning and implementation of new routes. For DCDPW, existing street sweeping service data was integrated with RouteSmart for ArcGIS software to establish baseline routing calculations from which to generate new routes. RouteSmart’s route balancing and sequencing solvers were then utilized by DCDPW staff to create new routes that met goals for both productivity and safety. After field validating the routing results with an actual drive-through, further adjustments were made to accommodate for local area knowledge of the crews and to account for constraints such as long traffic lights and congestion factors that were not initially modeled in the City’s GIS data.
Operational Impact
Quantitative Benefit
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