Depending upon the incident, law enforcement, fire and rescue, local public works department, (TCEQ), Texas Health and Human Services Commission or other agencies may respond. It is important to establish working relationships among the incident response entities. Frequent interaction with these response entities is essential, not only in large urban areas, but smaller jurisdictions as well. The type of incident and location will determine the incident commander.

TxDOT's normal role is to provide traffic control, set up detours, keep traffic moving and clear the roadway as appropriate. Changeable message boards should be used to provide information to motorists for prolonged incidents.