A Methodology to Improve Coordination in Tunnels Incidents Management

This paper presents a methodology to improve coordination in the management of traffic incidents that occur in tunnels. The authors note that tunnels are sensitive road segments in the road network and have complicating characteristics including a closed environment, artificial light and ventilation, and a limited number of exits. When an incident occurs in or nearby the tunnel, it is necessary to develop a set of measures of management and coordination between organizations that control the surrounding area of the tunnel. The paper describes the methodology developed by the ‘Dirección General de Tráfico’ (DGT) in Spain to create the actuation protocols for managing incidents in tunnels. The protocol was adapted from an original methodology used for traffic management during weather problems and at border crossings. The methodology is structured with three levels of information: scenarios, measurements, and actions. In other words, what has happened, how severe the incident is, and appropriate actions for each level of incident. The proposed scenarios for the incidents in tunnels are also dependent on three factors: the type of traffic inside the tunnel (unidirectional or bidirectional i.e. one or two pipes), severity of the incident and tunnel blockage inside the tunnel; and the relation between the times of alternatives itineraries and the estimated time for the incident resolution. The application of this methodology to a real-world setting is then examined with a case example using the Cerrado Calderon tunnel near Malaga, Spain.

• Corporate Authors:

  ITS America

  1100 17th Street, NW, 12th Floor
  Washington, DC  United States  20036
• Authors:
  • Mateos, Alberto Serrano
  • Alonso, Federico Fernandez
  • Esplugues, Enrique Belda
  • Tomas, Vicente R
  • Herrero, Maria
• Conference:
  • 15th World Congress on Intelligent Transport Systems and ITS America's 2008 Annual Meeting
  • Location: New York NY, United States
  • Date: 2008-11-16 to 2008-11-20
• Publication Date: 2008

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: CD-ROM
• Features: Maps; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 5p
• Monograph Title: ITS Connections: Saving Time. Saving Lives

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Case studies; Crash severity; Detours; Emergencies; Emergency management; Fire; Highway traffic control; Traffic congestion; Traffic crashes; Tunnels; Vehicular tunnels
• Geographic Terms: Malaga (Spain)
• Subject Areas: Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; Security and Emergencies; I73: Traffic Control;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01135939
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Jul 28 2009 7:24AM