Methodology for Developing a Prioritized List of Critical and Vulnerable Local Government Highway Infrastructure

摘要

This project was conducted to determine the national state-of-practice in assessing the vulnerability of local government highway infrastructure. The objective was to find an existing methodology or to create a new methodology appropriate for Alabama local governments. The most appropriate of these models was developed for state departments of transportation by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (ASASHTO). It consisted of six steps: identify critical assets, conduct a vulnerability assessment, conduct a consequence assessment, and determine countermeasures, estimate countermeasure costs, and review operational security planning. This research project adapted the AASHTO procedures by identifying portions that were difficult or seemed inappropriate for local governments, or for which local government personnel might lack sufficient knowledge or experience to implement. The modified procedures were tested in an Alabama county and city. For each case study, a two-day workshop was conducted. First a preliminary meeting was conducted to identify a local leader, to identify assessment team members, to obtain a preliminary list of critical assets, and to assemble background materials for the workshop. The first day of each workshop concentrated on applying the first three steps of the AASHTO procedure, and the second day consisted of selecting the potential countermeasures for the critical assets. The case studies identified several characteristics of the methodology that were difficult for local governments to readily use. Most of these were remedied by providing additional background information to bring assessment team members to the necessary state of knowledge to use the AASHTO procedure. At the conclusion of the project, the research team documented the methodology, as supplemented and modified, and developed a plan, time frame and cost estimate to systematically apply the procedure to Alabama local governments.