Impact of Climate Change and Non-Motorized Transportation Facilities

The subject of Climate Change including Sea Level Rise and how it will impact the Civil Infrastructure Systems (amongst other impacts such as environmental deterioration, energy availability and human health) has been one of the most (if not the most) important topic(s) of the 21st century. From religious leaders (including Pope Francis) to many political leaders (including President Obama) have addressed the importance of pro-actively preparing the world and especially the future generations for the impacts of Climate Change. Civil Infrastructure facilities such as roadways, bridges, tunnels and subways, rail stations, bus stations, parking lots, and airports, among other structures have seen their fair share of impact and sometimes deterioration models due to Climate Change studied to the fullest extent. No doubt more studies continue to be conducted now and in the future. There are currently numerous studies covering these specific facilities in the literature. Ironically, one topic that does not appear in the literature is how the Climate Change will impact non-motorized transportation facilities. Non-motorized transportation facilities such as pedestrian sidewalks, pedestrian and hiking trails, paths, bicycle paths, routes and trails, as well as public parks and recreation facilities have seen very little to no coverage in the literature. Besides using such facilities for recreation, many people use them for transportation and still a great many use them for maintaining a healthy lifestyle and a healthy environment. The major goal for the present project is to answer the following two important questions: Project’s Major Goal and Questions to Be Answered: How will climate change including sea level rise impact the non-motorized transportation facilities used by pedestrians and bicyclists? What can be done to minimize or even eliminate the negative impacts of climate change on such facilities?

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Completed
• Sponsor Organizations:

  University of Delaware, Newark

  College of Engineering
  Newark, DE  United States  19711

  Morgan State University

  1700 E. Coldspring Lane
  Baltimore, Maryland  United States  21251

  Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology

  University Transportation Centers Program
  Department of Transportation
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Managing Organizations:

  Mid-Atlantic Transportation Sustainability Center

  University of Virginia
  Charlottesville, VA  United States 
• Performing Organizations:

  University of Delaware, Newark

  College of Engineering
  Newark, DE  United States  19711

  Morgan State University

  1700 E. Coldspring Lane
  Baltimore, Maryland  United States  21251
• Principal Investigators:

  Faghiri, Ardeshir

  Shin, Hyeon-Shic

• Start Date: 20160601
• Expected Completion Date: 20180831
• Actual Completion Date: 0

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Bicycle facilities; Climate change; Infrastructure; Nonmotorized transportation; Parks; Pedestrian areas; Recreational facilities; Sea level; Trails
• Subject Areas: Environment; Pedestrians and Bicyclists; Terminals and Facilities;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01645874
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: Mid-Atlantic Transportation Sustainability Center
• Files: UTC, RIP
• Created Date: Sep 8 2017 9:41AM