Strategic Location of Satellite Salt Storage for Roadway Snow and Ice Control in Vermont.

摘要

Roadway snow and ice control operations can account for as much as 10% of VTrans annual budget. Important considerations for planning RSIC operations are the locations and quantities of surface-treatment materials like salt. In this paper, the use of satellite salt facilities (SSF) is examined, and a novel, real-world approach for locating SSFs is developed. We also demonstrate a method for ranking the effectiveness of individual SSFs with respect to their reduction of the distance vehicles must travel to reload salt. The approach is demonstrated using the actual federal-aid roadway network for the state of Vermont, and a locally optimal SSF location is identified for each of the existing service territories in the state. The results of an informal survey of satellite-salt siting practices amongst snow-belt DOTs are also reported. A critical aspect to siting new SSFs is the ability to utilize existing right-of-way around interstates, and survey respondents note the need to explore public-private partnerships with landowners adjacent to the state highway right-of-way who may be willing to sell or lease small portions of cleared land for use as SSFs. Using the information from the survey, the research team compares a smaller set of “ready-to-use” SSF locations (with adequate right-of-way) to the locally-optimized SSF locations.