A GIS-Based approach for estimating truck flow patterns in urban settings

This paper describes how a Geographic Information System (GIS) is being used to help estimate multi-class truck flows in an urban setting. Emphasis is placed on the reasons why this approach is valuable, the specific GIS tools and techniques employed, the value added by employing a GIS-based approach, and the results being obtained. These findings are generalized to describe the benefits that might be expected in other situations where a similar modeling approach is used.     

Risk analysis of vessel traffic systems

A risk analysis approach to the capital planning of vessel traffic services (VTS) is embedded within the benefit-cost methodology. The method is discussed in the Canadian context, but has already been used to plan the Hong Kong VTS system. Recently, in response to the Exxon Valdez oil spill, the US Congress asked for a study of the requirements for VTS systems in American ports and waterways, and the US Coast Guard chose to apply our risk analysis approach to their study.     

Finite element modelling and strength analysis of hold No. 1 of bulk carriers

Bulk carriers are subject to SOLAS regulations concerning the structural integrity of hold No. 1. SOLAS Chapter XII Regulation 6 mandates that the transverse watertight bulkhead between the two foremost holds and double bottom of the foremost hold shall have sufficient strength to withstand flooding of the first hold. This regulation applies to all single-skin bulk carriers of 150 m in length and upwards constructed before 1 July 1999. IACS provides rules for the construction of these areas of such vessels in order to comply with SOLAS Chapter XII. This paper presents a methodology for modelling hold No. 1 of bulk carriers using finite elements in order to assess the structural integrity of these areas under the loads prescribed by IACS. Results from respective nonlinear analyses using IACS loads are also presented.     

Planning for implementation

Although the urban transportation planning process has evolved into the most sophisticated of all urban planning processes, the increasirig difficulty in implementing long-range transportation plans in urban areas today suggests basic questions concerning the process which deserve critical examination.Planning for implementation of urban transportation programs, particularly during periods of rapidly changing human values, requires a continuing re-evaluation of both technical and organizational strategies and their interrelationships.This paper raises some fundamental questions about the traditional activities and relationships that have characterized most urban transportation planning programs in the past. It also suggests a number of strategies, both technical and organizational, that may contribute to the implementation of plans and programs resulting from the transportation planning process.The first portion of this paper discusses the implications of not providing transportation services to match metropolitan growth. The experience of the Washington Metropolitan Area over the past decade is used to illustrate these implications.A discussion of organizational and institutional constraints upon the planning process follows. Then, the implications for the planning process are explored, and the scale of planning is reviewed as well as the need for monitoring the performance and impact of facilities.Next, the paper deals with the need to broaden the range of solutions to transportation problems, including consideration of economic and land development policies to reduce travel demand, as well as the provision of new facilities.Finally, techniques for involving decision-makers in the planning process are discussed. Examples of special project activities in the Washington area are used to illustrate these techniques and their value.