Road Weather Management Program
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Best Practices for Road Weather Management Version 2.0

Best Practices > Publications > Publication Titles

Title:

An Investigation of User Costs and Benefits of Winter Road Closures

Abstract:

This project explores the user costs and benefits of winter road closures. Severe winter weather makes travel unsafe and dramatically increases crash rates. Therefore, the benefits of road closures are the avoided safety costs. The costs of road closures are the delays that are imposed on motorists and motor carriers who would have made the trip had the road not been closed. To better understand the costs and benefits of road closures, the project investigates the literature, conducts interviews with shippers and motor carriers, and conducts case studies of road closures to determine what actually occurred on roadways during closures. The project also estimates a statistical model that relates weather severity to crash rates. The report makes several specific recommendations to state transportation agencies responsible for winter weather-related road closure decisions.

Source(s):

Midwest Transportation Consortium, Prepared for U.S. DOT University Transportation Centers Program

Date: 2005

Author:

Maze, Crum, Burchett

Keywords:


Benefits
Costs
Crashes
Mobility
Safety
Winter Storm

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