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    <copyright>Copyright © 2026. National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.</copyright>
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    <managingEditor>tris-trb@nas.edu (Bill McLeod)</managingEditor>
    <webMaster>tris-trb@nas.edu (Bill McLeod)</webMaster>
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      <title>Cost-Benefit Analysis of Preemptive Weather-Related Road Closures</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2689390</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The decision to close a road and disrupt the flow of commerce and the traveling public results in significant costs. While maintaining roadway access is always the most preferred option, there may be scenarios, such as a multi-vehicle weather-related crashes, that induce a closure regardless of best efforts. Further, these crash scenarios place additional risk on the safety of transportation personnel, law enforcement, and emergency first responders. The resultant crash clean-up and recovery of damaged vehicles may further impede maintenance operations for a far longer duration than that of a proactive closure. The Nebraska Department of Transportation (NDOT) and the transportation community as a whole presently face unprecedented challenges with staffing shortages, financial uncertainty, and increasingly variable weather conditions. As such, the ability to determine when, where, and for how long to strategically close a road to maximize safety, minimize cost, and promote overall efficiency and reliability across the transportation network is paramount. The proposed project seeks to provide NDOT with quantitative metrics for meteorological trigger thresholds for road closures and a cost-benefit analysis of such decisions. This will allow NDOT to make consistent, justifiable decisions about when to close (and re-open) roads during extreme weather conditions.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 02 Jun 2026 12:24:05 GMT</pubDate>
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      <title>Enhancement of Traffic Control Tool for Reopening of Flooded Roadways</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2384730</link>
      <description><![CDATA[This project aims to enhance the current methodology and fatigue equation to determine when to reopen a roadway after a flooding event. The outcome of this research would help prevent accelerated damage to the pavement foundation and maintain the design surface life of a flooded roadway. The subject research would align with the State of Florida's Resiliency Program.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Mon, 03 Jun 2024 14:23:02 GMT</pubDate>
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      <title>Modeling Drivers’ En-route Diversion Behavior During Congestion: A Pilot Study</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2347372</link>
      <description><![CDATA[This study investigates factors influencing drivers' decisions to divert their routes in response to congestion and delays on coastal road networks. Key variables examined include information-seeking behavior, travel time, trip factors, and disruption scenarios such as emergency evacuations. The research utilized a comprehensive survey distributed to U.S. drivers to assess diversionary choices on coastal road networks based on travel habits, information sources, and demographic characteristics. The survey included questions about routine travel behaviors, sources of traffic information, and intended diversion actions under various scenarios, including weather events common to coastal regions. Logistic regression models, including multinomial and ordinal logit models, were employed to analyze the data. Results indicate that receiving real-time traffic information significantly increases the likelihood of diversion, particularly during work zones and adverse weather conditions such as fog or heavy rain. Travel time and delays emerged as critical motivators for route changes in coastal areas, with drivers experiencing longer delays being more likely to divert. Demographics impact diversion behavior: drivers aged 18 to 30 tend to choose "No Divert" during morning commutes and are less often "Unsure" during afternoon commutes. In contrast, drivers with incomes below $100,000 are more likely to be "Unsure" in the morning and less likely to choose "No Divert" in the afternoon. These findings contribute to a deeper understanding of driver behavior on coastal road networks, highlighting the importance of timely and reliable traffic information, especially during natural disasters. The study underscores the need for traffic management strategies and driver information systems that cater to drivers and preferences in a variety of coastal areas. By tailoring these strategies, transportation agencies can better manage traffic flow and reduce congestion, ultimately enhancing the overall efficiency and safety of the transportation network in regions vulnerable to coastal hazards.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Thu, 29 Feb 2024 19:26:03 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2347372</guid>
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      <title>SPR-4542: Alternative Strategies for Roadway Work Zone Safety and Productivity</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1726015</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The study will document the safety and productivity differences (a) between daytime and nighttime work zone operations and (b) between “rolling slowdown” and alternative methods for temporary closures of traffic through work zones. Intended deliverables include guidelines on which strategies to use, and under what circumstances.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 05 Aug 2020 14:58:47 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1726015</guid>
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      <title>How do Commuters React to a Temporary Freeway Closure? An Evaluation of the Fix I-5 Project in Sacramento, California</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1236264</link>
      <description><![CDATA[For the nine weeks of June and July, 2008, a one-mile stretch of Interstate 5 (I-5) in downtown Sacramento was intermittently closed for reconstruction. Among other evaluation efforts, this project conducted an internet survey of commuters potentially affected by the closure, with three key goals in mind: (1) to understand the extent and nature of the impacts on commuters; (2) to assess what commuters did in response; and (3) to monitor the persistence of any changes made during the Fix, after freeway operations returned to normal. The initial project budget permitted only descriptive tabulations and crosstabulations of the data, which are still underway. Here, we propose to extend the analysis to begin modeling the adoption of commute changes, and the intention to maintain those changes after the Fix was completed. Such models will provide a clearer picture of how multiple factors act together to increase or decrease the propensity to change. The results could help predict the impacts of future network disruptions of this nature, and will add to our understanding of the effects of programs promoting voluntary behavior change.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Thu, 03 Jan 2013 15:43:59 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1236264</guid>
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