Our surface transportation infrastructure and the public who use it are becoming increasingly vulnerable to severe weather conditions. Statistics show that 24% of all United States highway crashes are weather-related and each year, nearly 7,400 people are killed and over 673,000 people are injure... Show moreOur surface transportation infrastructure and the public who use it are becoming increasingly vulnerable to severe weather conditions. Statistics show that 24% of all United States highway crashes are weather-related and each year, nearly 7,400 people are killed and over 673,000 people are injured in these crashes. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates the average cost per crash in 2000 to be $14,100 (Pisano et al. 2008). Weather-related crashes are defined by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Road Weather Management program as those that occur in the presence of rain, sleet, snow, fog, wet pavement, snowy/slushy pavement, and/or icy pavement. Current methods to mitigate the impacts of these severe conditions include advisory information disseminated to travelers via local media, control options such as closing roads, and treatment operations that include snow removal. Decision support systems geared for a diverse group of end-users are becoming more widely implemented to combat the forces of nature. These systems can integrate atmospheric variables such as numerical weather prediction models and road pavement temperature with the resources available to a given municipality to produce a recommended course of action to ensure safety and efficiency. In addition, a connected system of vehicles that monitor road conditions and communicate with one another, in order to provide alerts of hazardous conditions ahead, promises to be a vital component of these systems. Decision support systems and connected vehicle technology represent the newest emerging technologies that will impact the future of intelligent transportation systems. Show less
