Risk-Cost-Benefit Databases and Graphical Aids for Allocating Resources to Road Safety Improvements. J. H. Lambert, J. A. Baker, C. R. Baldwin, I. A. Jacoub, and M. R. Raker, University of Virginia
Tens of thousands of road miles are considered by a transportation agency for the allocation of limited funding among safety projects. Characteristic factors for run-off-road accidents include lane and shoulder geometry, environmental conditions, driver behaviors, and characteristics of off-road obstacles, including guardrails. We develop a database and associated graphical aids for (a) screening of a large number of candidate project sites, and (b) deciding among a smaller number of potential projects using tradeoff analysis and optimization. We find that cost-benefit ratios give an incomplete view, and that crash-damage reductions, lifecycle costs, environmental protection, aesthetics, and economic development can all be considered by decision makers. We apply integer programming to solve the multicriteria constrained optimization and select a portfolio of projects. We demonstrate graphical aids useful for resource allocation in project selection and engineering decision making. We discuss the potential for tort liability from maintaining such databases in a public agency. We compare the problem of selecting a portfolio of safety projects to that of selecting among competing designs at particular sites. We describe how the developed tools improve communication among the agency engineers and managers, constituencies in local government, and the public. We discuss issues in the design of the automated risk-cost-benefit information systems and associated databases for use by the agency. We describe results of a survey of highway agencies across the US identifying what processes are currently being used to decide among safety improvements.
Work supported in part by the Virginia Transportation Research Council and the Virginia Department of Transportation.
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