From perception to preparedness: Virtual reality simulations of flooded roadways in coastal communities (UPRM)

Project Description: Coastal flooding regularly disrupts transportation networks, damages infrastructure, and limits access to essential services through storm surge, tidal inundation, and extreme precipitation. These events result in vehicle failures, stranded motorists, pavement damage, and delays in emergency response and daily mobility. Communities with aging infrastructure, limited resources, or constrained evacuation options face heightened vulnerability. The total annual economic burden of flooding in the U.S. ranges from $179.8 to $496.0 billion (US Congress JEC, 2024). In addition, the National Weather Service and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that over half of all flood-related drownings occur when a vehicle is driven into hazardous floodwater. Understanding how drivers decide whether to cross or avoid flooded roads is essential for designing warnings, signage, and roadway treatments that reduce risky behavior and improve outcomes. The use of virtual reality (VR) and immersive 360° scenarios can let residents experience rising water, blocked routes, and mitigation measures without real-world risk, increasing realism and emotional stimulus. Scenario-based VR visualizations can help translate technical flood data into intuitive, actionable information for nontechnical audiences. Local resilience depends not only on infrastructure but also on household-level preparedness and decision-making, including how individuals interpret alerts and respond to flood risks. Chacon-Hurtado (2013) advocates for embedding community preferences and preparedness considerations directly into transportation decision-making frameworks, arguing that investments should be evaluated not only on engineering metrics but also on how they advance local capacity to act under hazard conditions. This project will employ virtual reality (VR) simulations of flooded highways that are being developed by the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez (UPRM) team to study human behavior and perception in flood scenarios, with three main goals: (1) Enhance public understanding of flood risks by immersing participants in realistic coastal flooding scenarios, (2) Evaluate driver decision-making when encountering flooded roadways, analyzing how variables such as water depth, roadway conditions, and alert systems (e.g., signage, ADAS, in-vehicle alerts) influence choices, and (3) Assess community preferences for flood mitigation strategies, using immersive experiences to gather feedback on potential interventions. Two VR approaches will be implemented. The first involves a driver simulator with 24–36 participants navigating flooded roadway scenarios to assess behavioral responses under controlled conditions. The second approach will engage community members from coastal municipalities like Isabela, Puerto Rico, in immersive 360° simulations to explore perceptions of flood risk and mitigation strategies. Pre- and post-tests will measure changes in knowledge, perception, and behavioral intent. Insights from both simulations will inform the design of more effective alert systems and flood mitigation strategies that reflect community preferences and improve safety. The findings will support transportation and emergency planning professionals in developing human-centered solutions for flood-prone coastal areas.

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Active
• Funding: $50,005.00
• Contract Numbers:

  69A3552348330

• Sponsor Organizations:

  Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology

  University Transportation Centers Program
  Department of Transportation
  Washington, DC  United States  20590

  Coastal Research and Transportation Education (CREATE) University Transportation Center

  Texas State University
  San Marcos, TX  United States  78666

  University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez

  Department of Civil Engineering and Surveying
  PO Box 9000
  Mayagüez PR 00681-9000, PR  United States  00681-9000
• Managing Organizations:

  Coastal Research and Transportation Education (CREATE) University Transportation Center

  Texas State University
  San Marcos, TX  United States  78666
• Project Managers:

  Bruner, Britain

  Kulesza, Stacey

• Performing Organizations:

  University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez

  Department of Civil Engineering and Surveying
  PO Box 9000
  Mayagüez PR 00681-9000, PR  United States  00681-9000
• Principal Investigators:

  Trinidad, Ismael

  Figueroa Medina, Alberto

  del Puerto, Carla

• Start Date: 20260101
• Expected Completion Date: 20261231
• Actual Completion Date: 0
• USDOT Program: University Transportation Centers Program

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Behavior; Coasts; Decision making; Driving simulators; Floods; Highways; Risk management; Virtual reality
• Geographic Terms: Puerto Rico
• Subject Areas: Education and Training; Highways; Safety and Human Factors; Security and Emergencies;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01978103
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: Coastal Research and Transportation Education (CREATE) University Transportation Center
• Contract Numbers: 69A3552348330
• Files: UTC, RIP
• Created Date: Jan 31 2026 12:03PM