Analysis of the Circulation System of a Slurry Shield and the Muck Carrying Ability of a Dredging Pipe北大核心CSCD

The circulation system of a slurry shield is composed of a transportation system and a processing system.For shield construction, correct selection of the circulation system for the slurry shield is directly related to construc-tion speed. Using the Nanjing Yangtze tunnel as an example, the material balance calculation of the circulation sys-tem, sieving effect analysis, and analysis of the muck carrying ability of the dredging pipe are conducted for various strata. The practical results show that above mentioned calculations and analysis method provide a good reference for the proper selection of a slurry separation system and dredge pipe. © 2018, Editorial Office of "Modern Tunnelling Technology". All right reserved.     

The Value of a Statistical Life in a Road Safety Context — A Review of the Current Literature

Abstract

This paper summarizes the state-of-the-art for assessing the value of a statistical life (VSL) as a component of the costs of road accidents. It focuses on the most popular approaches for assessing the VSL, with respect to its theoretical foundations, current state-of-research and empirical evidence. Our paper also provides a first (to our knowledge) compendium of results for the VSL based on Stated Choice (SC) methods. Among the analysed alternatives, the willingness-to-pay (WTP) appears to be the leading approach for assessing the VSL and the SC methods represent the current state-of-the-art for determining the WTP for non-market goods. We conclude that the SC approach overcomes some of the most important shortcomings of the alternative approaches and offers a significant flexibility that can be used to address its own limitations. We also identify a significant need for research, as a gap between the methods employed in research (SC methods) and the state-of-the-practice (other methods) has emerged.     

Design and evaluation of a grade-separated intersection: a case study of the proposed Belgrade ‘Hipodrom’

This paper presents the evaluation results of three traffic solutions for the complex grade-separated intersection located in the old part of Belgrade at the junction with the new bridge over the Sava River. The corridor to which the intersection belongs together with the new river bridge are parts of a great urban artery called the Inner Half Semi-Ring Road (IHSRR). The traffic solutions that are evaluated are defined in the preliminary design phase, based on two opposed concepts: a complete grade separation of all intersection legs (the CPV alternative – ‘grade-separated’) and a grade separation designed to minimise construction costs (DMC 1 and 2 alternatives – ‘minimise cost’). The evaluation procedure is conducted in three steps: first, the score based on expert assessment of the functionality of the design solutions is determined; second, the alternatives are ranked according to the value of a set of state indicators obtained by micro-simulation using PTV–VISSIM 4.10; and third, the final score is obtained by multi-criteria evaluation using the Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) method. The results of the first evaluation step show a small advantage for DMC 2, a sub-alternative of the DMC 1 alternative. The results of the micro-simulation give advantage to the DMC 1 alternative. The multi-criteria evaluation provides a better ‘goodness factor’ for the CPV alternative against the DMC 1 alternative. At the same time, the least construction cost favours alternative DMC 1.     

Dynamic Evaluation of Reliability and Stability of the Primary Support of a Tunnel北大核心CSCD

The evaluation of the stability of a tunnel’s primary support is a crucial component of ensuring the safety of subsequent construction. In light of the measured clearance displacements of the Wushishan Tunnel, the reliabili-ty of the primary support is evaluated dynamically and the design of the support structure is optimized. The research results show that full displacement and ultimate displacement are two main parameters for tunnel reliability analy-sis: the former can be obtained by positive and negative analysis, and the latter can be acquired by simulating a field measurement of displacement. It is not sufficient to apply the data specified in the code for railway tunnel design re-liability regarding determination of the reliability of a road tunnel structure using reliability theory, and it is neces-sary to use reliability theory to amend the standard of allowable empirical displacement in the Code of Road Tunnel Design. © 2018, Editorial Office of "Modern Tunnelling Technology". All right reserved.     

Application of BIM Technology in the Construction Management of a Metro Station北大核心CSCD

For the restricted construction site of a Beijing metro station surrounded by many important buildings and characterized by complex staggered underground pipelines, many construction difficulties and a high level of re-quired management, settlement monitoring is necessary for the sake of construction safety. A 3D model of the metro,a model of the specially shaped structure and models of many details of the metro were established using the BIM technique, allowing for: creation of a 3D presentation, extraction of construction quantities, construction conse-quence optimization, guidance of construction endeavors, simulation of the construction process, 4D dynamic con-struction management and 4D dynamic settlement monitoring. © 2018, Editorial Office of "Modern Tunnelling Technology". All right reserved.     

Users of a regional telephone-based traveler information system – a study of TravInfo™ users in the San Francisco Bay Area

This paper reports the results of a 1998 survey carried out among a small sample of people who had called the TravInfo Travel Advisory Telephone System (TATS) in April 1997 looking for current information about traffic conditions in the San Francisco Bay Area. The survey employed a series of tradeoff questions designed to identify the specific attributes of the information that the respondents felt to be most important, and to estimate the relative values that these users had for various possible information improvements. Despite the small size of the sample, it proved feasible to investigate how the implicit valuations placed on each attribute of the service (update frequency, extent of road coverage, and level of customization) varied among different user segments. For the most part, respondents appeared to value basic enhancements – those that establish an initial quality differential above the baseline set by free broadcast traffic information – more than they value further subsequent improvements. Overall, more frequent information updates are the highest priority among the range of possible enhancements explored in the survey, followed by an extension of coverage to include major arterials in addition to freeways. However, the evidence suggests relatively little value in door-to-door coverage – that is, coverage of streets beyond the freeway and major arterial networks. This research produced some estimates of the average monetary values ("willingness to pay") that the sample of current users attached to information improvements of various kinds. While these values varied among subgroups in ways that fit a priori expectations, it is not clear whether they provide an unbiased picture of the users' absolute levels of willingness to pay, such that they could be used reliably to inform (for example) information pricing decisions. The value of this research lies more clearly in the light it sheds on the relative structure of user preferences, and on the variations in preferences between information attributes and market segments. Overall, the authors conclude that the prospects for self-sustaining ATIS services are unclear. In response to a direct question, a majority of users (perhaps influenced by a strategic bias) indicated that they were unwilling to pay for ATIS services; some of these same people, however, indicated later that they might indeed be willing to buy a particular enhanced ATIS package, in direct competition with free broadcast services.     

Determining the number and location of winter road maintenance depots – a case study of the district road network in Serbia

Determining the number and location of depots for winter road maintenance (WRM) represents one of the important strategic decisions while planning WRM activities. However, most organizations dealing with WRM make empirically based decisions. Optimizing the number and location of WRM depots has the potential to achieve considerable cost savings, improve mobility and efficiency, as well as reduce environmental impacts. This paper presents two optimization models. The first model determines the location of WRM depots by minimizing the total distance travelled by maintenance vehicles. The second model determines the optimum number and location of WRM depots by minimizing total transportation costs and capital expenditure and operational expenditure of the depots. The models are then applied to the district road network in Serbia. Results show that their application could lead to significant reductions in WRM costs.     

Strategic flexibility in shipping: an examination of a sector of the short‐sea ferry market

In the generally more dynamic modern business environment new modes of strategic planning have emerged, in which a premium is attached to the maintenance of flexibility in resource deployment. This paper discusses the principles involved, and considers the capacity of a segment of the sea ferry industry to exploit strategic flexibility as a means of coping with a rapidly changing environment. Potential sources of flexibility are examined in the paper and possible constraints identified. For the sector in question, it appears that strategic flexibility has been unduly limited by the nature of the resources employed, by prevailing corporate values, and by a tendency to respond to environmental uncertainty by short‐term reactions rather than long‐term measures. The general conclusion of the paper is that the sector examined, and possibly the industry as a whole, is strategically weak.     

A ‘Less-flexibility-first’ Heuristic for the Placement of Inland Vessels in a Lock

Abstract

Inland vessels move goods along waterways (canals and rivers) and they visit ports. Because of their tidal nature, vessels make use of locks to enter ports or waterways. From a port management point of view, fast access to and from the port and high utilization of locks are important objectives. Where the former relates to low inbound and outbound waiting times, the latter relates to the placement of as many vessels as possible in the lock before its operation. This article includes a case study that relates to the operation of the Van Cauwelaert lock in the port of Antwerp, Belgium. Lock operation policy is as follows: vessels wait in front of the lock for a port administrator to assign places in the lock based on knowledge of the vessels’ dimensions. As such, there is no FIFO-discipline, but a ‘group-FIFO’-discipline, i.e. if n vessels are allowed into the lock, they are the first n vessels in the arrival queue. A heuristic algorithm is formulated for the placement of vessels in the lock. This algorithm supports the decision where to place the vessel in the lock, aiming to place as many vessels as possible from the arrival queue. At the same time, it supports the decision to start a locking operation or not, based on information about vessels that are announced but which have not yet arrived at the lock's entrance. The heuristic is called a ‘less-flexibility-first’-heuristic as it looks for pseudo-placements, showing which flexibility is left for the remaining vessels after placing a vessel. This article describes the implementation of the heuristic and provides numerical examples. A comparison is made between the heuristic results and daily practice, based on real-life vessel movements through the Van Cauwelaert lock in 2002.     

Structural Optimization and Strength Analysis of the Lifting Arm of a Wet Shotcrete Spraying Unit北大核心CSCD

Wet shotcrete spraying units are widely used in underground engineering, for railways, highways, water conservancy and hydropower stations, municipal works, mining and military and other industries. Structural analysis and mechanical behavior optimization are conducted regarding the lifting arm of a TKJ series shotcrete spraying unit, and optimization of the hinge point position and working scope of the lifting arm is realized. The optimal layout scheme for the hinge force is given based on the Monte Carlo method, the hinge force of the lifting arm is improved for the mean and maximum values, and the maximum and average hinge force of the lifting cylinder decrease by 23.14% and 7.70%, respectively, compared with that of the original scheme. The static strength is checked using Ansys-Workbench for the optimized scheme, and the results show that the optimized scheme has a larger safety re-serve and that the structural design is more reasonable than the original scheme. © 2018, Editorial Office of "Modern Tunnelling Technology". All right reserved.     

Research on a Calculation Method for the Damage Evaluation of the Existing Urban Tunnel Lining Structure北大核心CSCD

The operation safety of the public transport is seriously threaten by the occurrence of defects and damages in existing urban tunnels, which affects the quality of traffic, and will shorten the service life of urban tunnels. Therefore, it is of great significance to evaluate the damages of the tunnel lining structure quickly and accurately. The damage evaluation methods of the existing urban tunnel lining structure are investigated and analyzed in this paper, and a combination method of the macroscopic evaluation of the existing damaged urban tunnel and the damage mechanism of the lining structural material is proposed. Among them, the assessment method specified in the national criterion is selected to evaluate the damages of the lining structure for the macroscopic evaluation, and the classification of tunnel health levels is optimized. Meanwhile, the damage modulus based on the elastic modulus is selected, and the concept of elastic modulus reduction rate is introduced for the mechanism of damage. Furthermore, the assumed function relationship between the health level and the damage degree of existing urban tunnels is proposed and established, which provides a new idea for structural damage assessment of existing urban tunnels. © 2018, Editorial Office of "Modern Tunnelling Technology". All right reserved.     

Do new sources of traffic data make the application of Chaos Theory to traffic management a realistic possibility?

Current signal systems for managing road traffic in many urban areas around the world lack a coordinated approach to detecting the spatial and temporal evolution of congestion across control regions within city networks. This severely inhibits these systems’ ability to detect reliably, on a strategic level, the onset of congestion and implement effective preventative action. As traffic is a time-dependent and non-linear system, Chaos Theory is a prime candidate for application to Urban Traffic Control (UTC) to improve congestion and pollution management. Previous applications have been restricted to relatively uncomplicated motorway and inter-urban networks, arguably where the associated problems of congestion and vehicle emissions are less severe, due to a general unavailability of high-resolution temporal and spatial data that preserve the variability in short-term traffic patterns required for Chaos Theory to work to its full potential. This paper argues that this restriction can now be overcome due to the emergence of new sources of high-resolution data and large data storage capabilities. Consequently, this opens up the real possibility for a new generation of UTC systems that are better able to detect the dynamic states of traffic and therefore more effectively prevent the onset of traffic congestion in urban areas worldwide.     

Educating parents to support children’s road safety: a review of the literature

ABSTRACT

This narrative review synthesised the limited work that has been carried out into road safety education targeting parents. Parent education appeared to have a positive impact on child safety seat use and children’s bike helmet use, but results regarding the impact of parent education on pedestrian safety were mixed. The review highlighted important gaps in the literature. A key gap being identifying effective ways to engage parents of low socioeconomic and ethnic minority backgrounds. Further, another gap is understanding effective ways to engage and support parents of children with additional needs to build their children’s road safety skills. There is some evidence that parent education has a positive impact on these “at-risk” groups, but little work on how to engage with these groups and the type of parent education required.     

Study on the Stress and Deformation Behaviors of a Deep and Irregular Foundation Pit as the Shield Launching Shaft in a Sea Reclaimed Cofferdam北大核心CSCD

With the development of the tunnel technology in China, the shield tunnel will become an important way to build the Sea-crossing channel. Taking the current largest diameter Shantou Bay shield tunnel in China as the engineering background, this paper introduces the challenges faced by the construction of the shield launching shaft in the reclamation cofferdam: e.g. deep, irregular excavation, deep silt layer and great influence of the seawater. Based on the practical conditions, a top-down construction technique of large ring beam considering two working conditions of foundation pit excavation and shield launching is proposed. Based on three-dimensional finite element analysis and field measurement, the stress characteristics and soil deformation of foundation pit are studied. The results show that the top-down construction technique of large ring beam can effectively control the deformation of the foundation pit and save construction time. © 2018, Editorial Office of "Modern Tunnelling Technology". All right reserved.     

Service quality––developing a service quality index in the provision of commercial bus contracts

The measurement of service quality continues to be a challenging research theme and one of great practical importance to service providers and regulatory agencies. The key challenges begin with the identification of the set of potentially important dimensions of service quality perceived by passengers, current and potential. We then have to establish a way of measuring each attribute and identifying their relative importance in the overall calculation of satisfaction associated with existing service levels. Once a set of relevant attributes has been identified, this information can be integrated into programs such as monitoring and benchmarking, and even in contract specification. This paper, building on earlier research by the authors, investigates ways of quantifying service quality and comparing the levels within and between bus operators. The importance of establishing suitable market segments and the need to scale the service quality index for each operator to make meaningful comparisons is highlighted.     

The History of the Transport Future—Evaluating Dutch Transport Scenarios of the Past

Abstract

This paper examines 42 business‐as‐usual (BAU) scenarios for future transport and traffic development in the Netherlands from the period 1970 to 2000. An important aspect of these scenarios is that they indicate the potential future state of the transport system if the policies in place at the time continue unchanged, thus raising issues which may require a policy response. This paper shows that in most of the important BAU transport scenario results of the past in the Netherlands, such as future car use and transport emissions, the policy makers were not misled. The prognoses for traffic congestion are an important exception as they underestimated the congestion problems that would arise. This paper shows that, based on the research it examines, BAU transport forecasting is an inaccurate practice. It is recommended that the BAU scenario designer communicates this high inaccuracy, enabling the policy maker to include the inherent future uncertainty in their decision‐making.     

Application of Chinese Characters in the Design and Construction of the Badaling Great Wall Station of the Beijing-Zhangjiakou High-Speed Railway北大核心CSCD

The new Badaling tunnel is the longest tunnel on the under-construction Beijing-Zhangjiakou highspeedrailway, with the Badaling Great Wall station to be built in the tunnel. This station, which is under the Badaling Great Wall historic site, is the world’s largest underground high-speed railway station with the most complicated structure and the largest overburden and excavation area. It is therefore a representative project for China’s highspeed railway development strategy, supporting infrastructure facilities for the Beijing Horticultural Expo 2019 and the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, and it is important that it be of high quality and completed safely. In the de-sign and construction of the station, the glyphs of the Chinese characters of "中",”国”,”人”and”品”are used, re-spectively, along the station route, in the rescue and evacuation mode, auxiliary adit and partial excavation, which is a way to successfully integrate the art of Chinese characters into tunnel engineering. © 2018, Editorial Office of "Modern Tunnelling Technology". All right reserved.     

Environmental impacts of high-speed rail links in cost–benefit analyses: a case study of the Dutch Zuider Zee line

Since 2000 it has been formally required in the Netherlands to evaluate major infrastructure projects according to a standard manual. Here the focus is on its application to the Zuider Zee line, a possible rail link to run from the west to the north of the country, starting at Schiphol Airport and ending at the northern towns in the province of Groningen. We put a major emphasis on environmental impacts of the line, including the methods used to estimate impacts and the results. Ways to improve current practice are discussed. A major advantage has been that the environment has been put on the research and policy agenda at an early stage, although insights into the effects of rail infrastructure on the landscape and nature are limited.     

Study of the Settlement Control of Deformation Joints of Tunnels Passing Closely under the Existing Station北大核心CSCD

The newly-built tunnel passing closely under the existing station will inevitably lead to settlement of the existing station, and especially deformation joints are prone to differential settlement. Based on the Suzhoujie Station of Beijing Subway Line 16 passing closely under the existing Line 10, this paper analyzes the overall settlement of the existing station and the differential settlement at deformation joints through a combination of field measurement and numerical simulation. The study results show that installing jacks significantly prevents the settlement of the existing station, after installation of jacks the settlement of the existing station is reduced by about 58%, and the jacking force of the jack shall be controlled between 180-450 t; the impact of construction on the single-deck station structure side at deformation joints is greater than that on the double-deck station structure side, the stress on the socket is gradually increased with the excavation of the lower tunnel, and reduced after installation of jacks, indicating that the jack can effectively reduce the tensile stress of the existing station and maintain the safety of the existing station; with the action of the jacking force of jacks, the settlement curve of the existing station presents a stepwise change at the jack installation points, while the upper ground surface settlement is relatively uniform. © 2022, Editorial Office of "Modern Tunnelling Technology". All right reserved.     

Incorporating refuelling behaviour and drivers’ preferences in the design of alternative fuels infrastructure in a city

The purpose of this article is to present an optimization model to plan the deployment strategy for hydrogen refuelling stations in a city when Origin–Destination (OD) data are not available. This model considers two objectives: to maximize the traffic covered by the selected hydrogen refuelling stations and minimize the average distance of the city’s inhabitants to the nearest hydrogen refuelling station. As OD data are assumed to be unavailable, the clustering of stations in the highest traffic zones is prevented by a new constraint that takes into account information on the distribution of existing conventional refuelling stations. This model is applied to Seville, a city in Southern Spain of about 140 km² with a population of around 700,000. This application uses the results of a survey of more than 200 Sevillian drivers on their current refuelling tendencies, their willingness to use alternative fuel vehicles and their minimum requirements (regarding maximum distance to be travelled to refuel and number of stations in the city) when establishing a network of alternative refuelling stations.