Dynamic Decision Modeling for Inland Waterway Disruptions

The inland waterway system is a major component of the U.S. transportation system. Disruption on the inland waterway system can have widespread economic and societal impacts, and their consequences can be significant. However, the uncertainty associated with the disruptive events, such as extreme weather conditions, have made it difficult to determine whether it is optimal to stay on the water and wait for the locked traffic to clear, or it is more economical to redirect to rail or freight transportation. In order to facilitate decision making in the event of waterway closure under uncertainty, this research proposes a dynamic multi-criteria decision framework that can be used to find a timely and optimal solution for the greatest overall societal benefits. The potential contribution of this research is threefold: (1) this is the first study to incorporate uncertainty in the decision process when facing inland waterway disruption; (2) it proposes the idea of collaborative planning in the event of disruption when all stakeholders' decision goals are considered simultaneously; and (3) it develops a user-interactive real-time decision support tool that can automate the decision process and propose an optimal solution in a short period of time.

• Record URL:
  http://martrec.uark.edu
• Supplemental Notes:
  • project is complete

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Completed
• Funding: $236165.00
• Contract Numbers:

  DTRT13-G-UTC50

• Sponsor Organizations:

  University of Arkansas, Fayetteville

  Department of Industrial Engineering
  Fayetteville, AR  United States  72701

  Research and Innovative Technology Administration

  University Transportation Centers Program
  1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Performing Organizations:

  University of Arkansas, Fayetteville

  Department of Industrial Engineering
  Fayetteville, AR  United States  72701
• Principal Investigators:

  Nachtmann, Heather

  Zhang, Shengfan

• Start Date: 20140801
• Expected Completion Date: 20161231
• Actual Completion Date: 20161231
• Source Data: RiP Project 37071

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Decision making; Economic impacts; Freight traffic; Inland water transportation; Service disruption; Uncertainty; Weather conditions
• Subject Areas: Freight Transportation; Marine Transportation; Operations and Traffic Management; Planning and Forecasting;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01573282
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: Maritime Transportation Research and Education Center
• Contract Numbers: DTRT13-G-UTC50
• Files: UTC, RIP
• Created Date: Aug 21 2015 1:01AM