Program Overview

The National TIM Responder Training Program was developed by responders for responders, and was designed to establish the foundation for and promote consistent training of all responders to achieve the National Unified Goal (NUG) for TIM. The TIM NUG is a commitment to:

• The Safety of Responders and All Road Users
• Safe, Quick Clearance
• Communication, Coordination, and Cooperation

Under the leadership of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), implementation of the National TIM Responder Training Program began in mid-2012 and utilized a Train-the-Trainer approach to build a national team of instructors to support the goal of training over 1.3 million responders across the country. The target audience for the training is all TIM disciplines, including, but not limited to: Communications, Emergency Medical Services (EMS), Fire/Rescue, Law Enforcement, Towing and Recovery, and Transportation/Public Works.

Topics covered in the course include TIM laws, standards and terminology, communication and command, vehicle positioning, scene safety, traffic management, scene hazards, and clearance and termination. In-person multidisciplinary training sessions are encouraged whenever possible as they provide the added benefit of fostering relationships across agencies and disciplines. However, to ensure the training is available to all responders, FHWA worked with the National Highway Institute and the Responder Safety Learning Network to create two web-based versions of the training. Most recently the program has been expanded to include a 1-hour Refresher Training and a number Supplemental Lessons that provide a deeper dive into topics such as Rural TIM and the use of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) for TIM.

If you are interested in learning more about TIM Training efforts in your State, you can reach out to your State Point of Contact.

TIM Training Implementation Progress

The maps and tables below provide a real-time interactive summary of the progress that has been made training responders across the country.