Page 8 - TN811

Life in a Small Town
Iam not a math or statistics person. Numbers make my brain hurt (and my mind wanders to far off places), but I have to recognize how important collecting data is to analyze an issue, track progress, measure performance and prioritize goals to solve problems.
I recently prepared an 811 presentation that included statistics on underground utility damage reported through CGA’s Damage Information Reporting Tool (DIRT) in the state of Tennessee. The slide showed a three-year comparison of locate ticket requests and damages reported from 2019 through 2021.
I like my statistics easy. I like them to jump out at me with a huge contrast between what is being compared so that it readily stands out and you can see plainly what is going on (less brain work involved!). When the number
of ticket requests goes up you would assume that reported damages would also rise just based on the fact that more excavation is being performed. When you look at the numbers from 2019 to 2021, they show that as ticket volume increased year over year, reported damages decreased each year. The numbers:
2019: 911,745 tickets = 8,378 reported damages
2020: 982,467 tickets = 8,203 reported damages
2021: 1,033,777 tickets = 6,913 reported damages
Maybe if you are a professional statistician, you might say I am drawing too simple a conclusion, I don’t have enough data, there are other variables to consider, rates of error in reporting, etc. True, I already admitted, “I am
not a math or statistics person” but by my simple observation, it looks like
use of the 811 system (the more locate
6 • Tennessee811 2024, Issue 2
tickets that are requested) decreases the amount of damage to underground utilities within those overall requests.
So, while I think these numbers look great and I hope to see more data over time to keep making this correlation, they are not the “jump out at me” contrast I really wanted to highlight in this article.
When I showed these numbers in front of my group during a presentation, I moved forward a few slides to one that showed the number of complaints filed with the Tennessee Public Utilities Commission (TPUC) for 2022. That number? 332.
Yes, my brain fired up and I made
a puzzled face as I flipped back to
the “Number of Reported Damages” slide and then back to the “Number
of Complaints Filed” slide. How was THAT number possible? 6,913 reported damages and only 332 total complaints sent to the TPUC?
Now not every complaint filed with the TPUC is DAMAGE related (e.g., failing to notify the One-Call before digging, working on an expired ticket, requesting an emergency ticket for
a non-emergency situation, etc.), but the number one reported violation in Tennessee (no locate request) results in a quarter of all damages at the national level and the number two violation (failure to use reasonable care) most likely resulted in damage that initiated a complaint.
Still, I had to ask myself how so many damages resulted in so few formal complaints. Looking back over the numerous conversations I have had with member utilities throughout Tennessee, the answer seems to lie with “working relationships”.
Individuals and organizations that work in locating, utilities or excavation (including homeowners/private
property owners and anyone else
who has experienced or witnessed
a violation) can submit violations
of the Underground Utility Damage Prevention Act in the form of a complaint to the TPUC for investigation and resolution. Utilities make up the largest group submitting complaints
to the TPUC for violations but with
so many small utilities and small local contractors/excavators in the state,
the desire to work out differences
and settle conflict without submitting formal complaints is a recurring theme. Communication between the involved parties is always the first response
to resolve a problem while providing someone the opportunity to repair or pay for damages or a second chance to just “do better” before they are formally reported.
I get it. While damage to a utility requires mandatory reporting to DIRT, filing a formal complaint to TPUC is discretionary and because it can result in a formal warning, training, and heavy monetary fines, it often times gets reserved for what someone feels is a more substantial violation or series of violations.
Reminds me of the folks I know who do small town policing. It’s a fine line between enforcing the law, keeping
the peace, and maintaining support within your community. It is a difficult situation to correct someone or penalize them and try to maintain a harmonious relationship with people you might be standing in line next to at a grocery store or sitting next to at a little league game down the road...
Let’s all make sure we’re keeping our eyes on the goal of damage prevention, and let’s not overlook the available tools (including enforcement) that
can help us make sure damage counts trend down instead of up, to keep our communities safer.
By Marcus Bartholomew Damage Prevention Liaison Tennessee811