So you’ve been in an accident. Whether it’s your fault or the fault of another driver, it’s likely you’ll need to get your hands on the accident report.

In the past, that has meant waiting in long lines and tying up precious time at the police department. But that has all changed in Johnson City, with the introduction of a 90-day pilot program where traffic accident reports can be obtained online.

“It is our desire to provide a level of expediency to anyone wishing to view and print police reports in the convenience of their home or business,” said Johnson City Police Chief John Lowry.

With the help of the TRACView Accident Report System, the Johnson City Police Department will now be able to give citizens that convenience.

“I started a couple of years ago trying to find a way to scan reports,” said Sgt. John Hames, officer in charge of the records department at the JCPD. “It’s something that’s never been done in this area before and we’re hoping it takes off.”

TRACView is an Internet-based application that was developed to help law enforcement agencies and insurance companies manage and access traffic accidents more efficiently.

For individuals involved in an accident, that means a quicker, easier way to get an accident report. Typically the report will be available within 24 hours of being scanned and only takes a few minutes to obtain.

And while the system gives obvious benefits to citizens, it also helps the JCPD in several ways.

“We’re hoping that it will reduce our window traffic,” Hames said. “We only have that one window (at Public Records) and a lot of times we have 15 to 20 people waiting in line at that window.”

In addition, the system will allow officers access to accident information for all agencies on the system and will offer a better way of archiving accident reports at the JCPD.

“Once it’s scanned in, we’ll be able to have an archive that is a permanent, exact record,” said John Toms, a records clerk at the JCPD. “As it is right now, the diagrams and witness statements are not put into the computer. We actually have to go downstairs into our archives and have to find it. Having an exact duplicate right there will be much more convenient.”

The JCPD Records department files nearly 4,000 traffic crash reports a year, with most reports involving at least two vehicles. This means that an estimated 8,000 individuals and their insurance companies are requesting copies of reports each year.

“We probably look at 10 reports a day,” Hames said. “And one report could generate as many as four people needing a copy.”

With the new online method of obtaining accident information, reports are converted to PDF format, making them easy to view, save, print and e-mail. Those looking for a report can do so in seconds by searching for a driver’s name, accident date or location, license numbers or a report number.