Routing Help

SUMMARY

The goal of the routing page is to use one of the methods provided to select the route to be used by the permit vehicle and ask the system to check whether or not the route can be permitted.  The route analysis process will typically check the continuity of the route, all horizontal and vertical clearances along the route, all temporary restrictions (construction or otherwise) in effect during the extent of the permit, and for overweight vehicles, perform an actual live load analysis of every structure the permit vehicle will cross over.

You can select the option to "Request office review" at any time if you encounter any problems you do not understand or are unable to successfully route your vehicle.  However, if you are able to successfully route the vehicle, you should select the default option to "Use selected trip to request permit".  You may be able to have the system issue the permit without any permit office intervention (in specific cases controlled by the permit office), or the analysis you have performed will help the permit office process your permit more quickly in the cases where the permit office requires it to be reviewed.

COMMAND OVERVIEW

There are two basic types of commands available on the routing page.  They are commands for Map Navigation and Query and commands that actually perform the Routing.  Following is more detail on each specific command for each of the two groups.

Map Navigation and Query

There is a map zoom control in the top left corner of the map. Use the arrows to pan (scroll) the map. Click the circle between the arrows to fit the map to the window. Use the slider to change the zoom level. And use the magnifying glass to enable the zoom in command so you can zoom to a point you pick on the map or draw a window on the map that you want to zoom. You can also use the mouse scroll wheel to zoom in and out about the location of the cursor. The mouse can be panned (scrolled) by dragging the map. Hold the left mouse button down and drag the map as you want to dynamically pan the map. It should be noted that most of the routing commands automatically do map manipulation based on where they believe the trip is going.

Several commands are provided to change the information shown on the map, as well as to find and highlight specific elements. These commands are found on the border of the map. The commands are provided to help better use the map for routing purposes. Following is a list of the commands along with a basic description of how they work.

• Find / Locate Item - Selecting this command opens a form that allows several items to be located.  Use this command to find a specific route, intersection / interchange, city, town, or county by selecting the appropriate option and entering the name.  This form also allows you to activate the command that will identify routes on the map by selecting them.  To use this option, select the option "Find route by selecting on map", select OK and then select a route on the map.  The system will highlight the route and display the name of the route in the Prompt field just under the map.  All other commands that require the input of a named location will highlight the element on the map as well.
   
• Display Temporary Restrictions - Selecting this command will display the location of any temporary restrictions on the map, if any temporary restriction information has been entered.  The temporary restrictions will be shown in three different colors indicating locations where the roadway is completely closed (red by default), where one or more attributes has been reduced (orange by default), and where there is some information that needs to be communicated but which does not necessarily impede travel (yellow by default).  To see the details of a restriction, place the cursor over the restriction and press the right mouse button.  When the pop-up menu appears, select "Temp. Restriction Info".  The restriction description will appear in the pop-up window.
  
• Map Options - Selecting this command opens a form that allows the map display to be configured.  The color for each type of item displayed on the map can be set by selecting the color block next to the specific element description and then selecting a new color.
   
• Clear Highlights - Selecting this command removes all temporary highlighting from the map and returns it to its initial state.
   

Routing

There are five possible methods for routing the vehicle are provided.  There may be some variation in routing options enabled in a specific implementation.  The options include Picking Route Segments, Text Description, Auto Orig/Dest Routing, Loading Saved Trips, and Manual (Free form text).  The various methods have been provided to give you options in defining trips in the way you are most comfortable.  The following sections describe how and why to use each option.  Each routing option provides the ability to request a permit office review at any time.  Depending on the type of permit and the rules currently in place with the permit office, you may also be able to automatically receive a permit for a vehicle you successfully route through this page without requiring any interaction or specific approval from the permit office.  At the conclusion of any analysis, the results of the analysis will be summarized in a small form and the trip will be color coded showing passing and failing areas. 

There are two other options related to routing that let you Clear the current trip and start over, and Save trip for future use to speed the route selection of frequently used routes.  Additionally, there are two Advanced Options that are available when using the picking route segments method.  These advanced options allow you to Remove the last trip segments from the end of the trip you are currently selecting, and Add additional trips to the route request.  Both of these Advanced Options will be described below.

• Picking Route Segments - This command allows you to interact with the map to define a trip much like you interact with a paper map, that is, "tracing" the trip you want to take.  To use the Picking Route Segments method, select it in step 1 as the method of routing and then select step 2, Select route on map.  If the general origin description from the application can be located, the map will automatically zoom in to that general location.  Pick on the map where the trip is to begin.  The system will automatically use the closest intersection / interchange it can find to that picked location (however, it will not include or analyze anything in that initial intersection or interchange).  Make a second pick on the same route to indicate the direction of travel on that first route.  This second pick can be on the same segment or anywhere along the route up to the location where travel on the route will end.  From that point on, make one pick on each route that will be traveled on and then make an ending pick at the destination.  The map will automatically keep zooming to center on the end of the trip as it is currently defined.  You can use any of the Map Navigation commands to change the view of the map at any time and then get back to the trip picking by selecting step 2, Select route on map again or by right-clicking the map.  There are two Advanced Options available when using the picking method of route selection.  The first is the Add additional trip option.  This option is used when the route is discontinuous, as may occur when traveling on and off the state network to local roads.  When this option is selected during route picking, the next pick will start a “trip within a trip” that will continue until the trip selection is complete, or until the Add additional trip option is selected again.  Using this option, there can be any number of disconnected trips that will make up the selected route for the permit.  The second Advanced Option is the Remove last trip segment option.  Use this option to remove segments from the end of the current trip being defined.  Each time the option is selected, a segment is removed from the end of the trip.  This option will typically be used if a trip is defined beyond an intersection/interchange or beyond the intended ending location, and it is desired to “back-up” and then continue.  Once the entire trip is selected, select step 3, Analyze the trip to see if the vehicle can be permitted for the trip.
   
• Text Description - This command allows you to define a trip via text input.  To use the Text Description method, select it in step 1 as the method of routing and then select step 2, Enter your text description.  If the general origin description from the application can be located, the map will automatically zoom in to that general location.  The Text-Based Routing Wizard form will open.  Use the fields to define the exact origin of the trip and then select the Next button.  Define all intermediate routes, selecting Next after each one.  To end the trip definition process, change the "Go To" field to "End At" and define the exact destination location.  You can use any of the Map Navigation commands to change the view of the map at any time.  Just select anywhere on the form to re-activate it.  When the trip has been fully defined, select the Use Trip button.  You can also start over or view the description of the trip selected to this point by selecting the Start Over and Details buttons respectively.  Selecting Use Trip will close the form and highlight the defined trip.  Select step 3, Analyze the trip to see if the vehicle can be permitted for the trip.
   
• Auto Orig/Dest Routing - This command allows you to define an origin and destination location and have the system find an initial route it would like to be used.  The route still needs to be analyzed for the specific permit vehicle.  To use the Auto Orig/Dest Routing method, select it in step 1 as the method of routing and then select step 2, Select route origin.  If the general origin description from the application can be located, the map will automatically zoom in to that general location.  The Origin Location Selection form will open.  There are two main options on this form.  The first option allows for a textual specification of the specific origin much like the Text Description command.  The second option allows you to pick the location on the map.  If you select the first option, use the fields to define the exact origin of the trip and then select the OK button.  If you select the second option, select OK and then select the origin location on the map.  Regardless of the method used, a green dot will appear at the exact origin location.  Once the origin is defined, select step 3, Select route destination and repeat the process.  You can use any of the Map Navigation commands to change the view of the map at any time.  Once the origin and destination are defined, select step 4, Find the route and analyze it to see if the vehicle can be permitted for the initially selected trip.
   
• Loading Saved Trips - This command allows you to define a trip by loading a trip you have previously saved.  If a trip is frequently used, saving that trip and loading it for future requests can dramatically decrease the amount of time it takes to route the permit vehicle.  To use the Load Saved Trip method, select it in step 1 as the method of routing and then select step 2, Load a saved trip.  A form will open with a list of all the trips that have been saved.  Select the desired trip and select OK.  The trip will be loaded and displayed on the map.  Select step 3, Analyze the trip to see if the vehicle can be permitted for the trip.
   
• Manual (Free form text) - This command allows you to define a trip by typing in any text you want to describe the routes to be used. This method will not analyze any part of the trip as the system will not be able to “interpret” the free form text entry. This method will require the request be sent to the office for manual review, but allows for an easy way to communicate a requested trip with the office. System issuance is never possible with this method. (Not available with all implementations)
   
• Clear the current trip - This command clears any currently selected trip and allows you to start over in routing the permit vehicle.
   
• Save trip for future use - This command saves the currently defined trip for future use by the Load Saved Trip method.

Clearance Analysis Override

If you can certify that the route entered into the system can be safely traversed by a vehicle having the height and width dimensions that you entered into the permit application, you may choose to use the “Clearance Analysis Override” option by clicking the Clearance Analysis Override checkbox in the left margin of this page.  If you cannot certify that the route entered into the system can be safely traversed by a vehicle with the height and width dimensions entered into the permit application, then do not check the Clearance Analysis Override checkbox, as this may put yourself or the traveling public in harms way.  Selecting this option may result in, but does not guarantee, getting a permit issued more quickly as other restrictions may apply.

Route Prefixes and Roadway Suffixes

To enter a numbered route, type the prefix (optional), route number, and suffix (if any).

Numbered Route Prefixes

Interstate I or I-

US U, US, or US-

State S, XX, or XX- (where XX is the 2 character State abbreviation)

County C, CR, or CR-

To enter a named route, type the street name with suffix abbreviation defined below.