Investing in Transportation Resilience: A Framework for Informed Choices (2021) / Chapter Skim
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From page 7... ...
7 The reinsurer Munich RE reported in January 2021 that in the preceding year, 6 of the world's 10 most costly natural disasters occurred in the United States.1 The most destructive was Hurricane Laura ( Category 4 with winds of 240 km/h) , which landed near Lake Charles in western Louisiana during August 2020.
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8 INVESTING IN TRANSPORTATION RESILIENCE billion-dollar natural disasters, when adjusted for inflation, averaged 2.9 per year, but in 2020 alone the United States experienced more than 20.3 Beyond these disastrous events, climate change is bringing about slow but persistent changes in sea level and temperature and precipitation extremes that are intensifying storm damage and accelerating infrastructure deterioration.4 The country's highways, ports, waterways, airports, railways, and public transit systems are vital to the economy and everyday lives of Americans. In the periods immediately before, during, and after natural disasters they are essential for evacuations, rescue, and access to critical supplies and services.
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INTRODUCTION 9 Although most of the country's public-sector transportation infrastructure is owned and operated by state and local governments, the federal government has much at stake in ensuring that sufficient, effective, and timely investments are made to deliver a resilient national transportation system. The preservation and rapid restoration of the many important local and regional functions of transportation systems is in the public interest generally, and it is in the national interest to avoid disruptions that cascade across broader transportation and logistics networks, threatening economically and socially critical supply chains.
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10 INVESTING IN TRANSPORTATION RESILIENCE in clear and reliable metrics that convey the degree of resilience already in the transportation system and that would be added by well-planned and targeted public investments in infrastructure and recovery capacity. Many considerations go into the prioritization of transportation investments, some of which are more quantifiable (such as traffic impacts)
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INTRODUCTION 11 high winds, and changing freeze-thaw patterns. The kinds of data, methodologies, and analytic tools needed to design and apply such metrics will be examined as well as to evaluate their relevance and prioritize their use.
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12 INVESTING IN TRANSPORTATION RESILIENCE • Relocating assets of a transportation network to sites with lower risk of stress and damage; or • Enhancing design standards for new infrastructure to improve resilience to natural disasters and changing climate conditions. The infrastructure for the U.S.
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INTRODUCTION 13 TABLE 1-1 Physical Infrastructure Assets for Transportation Modes Transportation Mode Physical Infrastructure Assetsa Road network Roads, bridges, tunnels, culverts, traffic signals, toll collection gantries/booths Maritime Docks, breakwaters, entrance channels, main basins, container yards, roads and rail lines, container freight terminals, warehouses Air transportation Airport terminals, runways, taxiways, control towers, aprons, hangars, access roads, heliports Inland waterways Channels, locks, dams, terminals Railroad Tracks, bridges, tunnels, culverts, yards, maintenance facilities, passenger stations, signal and traction power systems Transitb Tracks, bridges, tunnels, stations, signal and traction power systems, maintenance and storage facilities, bus roadways Pipelines Pipes, pumping stations, compressor stations, manifolds, storage facilities a Various transport networks are also supported by systems with control, monitoring, and communications functions, as well as fire, life, safety, and security capabilities. b Modes include, but are not limited to, bus, commuter rail, ferry, heavy rail, and light rail.
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14 INVESTING IN TRANSPORTATION RESILIENCE BOX 1-1 Definitions Adaptive capacity -- Ability of a system to adjust, repair, and respond to damage or disruption.a Climate change -- Changes in average weather conditions that persist over multiple decades or longer. It encompasses increases and decreases in temperature and changes to features of the climate systems, such as shifts in precipitation.b Criticality -- Importance or value of infrastructure asset, in terms of the cost to users, owners, and society from a loss in functionality.
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INTRODUCTION 15 Sensitivity -- Whether the asset may be damaged or disrupted by the stressor.g Vulnerability -- Potential for harm to system functionality due to disruption caused by a hazard. Vulnerability is a function of the characteristics -- scale and scope -- of the hazard and the location, design, and condition of the infrastructure asset.h a FHWA (Federal Highway Administration)
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16 INVESTING IN TRANSPORTATION RESILIENCE The committee carefully considered the feasibility of identifying a single or small set of metrics to characterize the resilience of transportation systems and services. It quickly became apparent that such a unitary metric was unlikely to be found.
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INTRODUCTION 17 an example of the effects that such disruptions can have on major transportation facilities and systems. The chapter also relates the way natural hazards can be characterized for analysis purposes and describes several tools that historically have been used by transportation planners to understand the natural hazards affecting their facilities.
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