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https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/27432/critical-issues-in-transportation-for-2024-and-beyond

Operational Blowing Snow Modeling: Benefits for the End User

Wintertime precipitation presents a maintenance decision maker with challenges on how to address the varying road conditions that inevitably occur. Many locations that respond to snow and ice also undergo excessive high wind conditions resulting in blowing snow. Along with freezing rain, blowing snow conditions can strike fear into any maintenance decision maker on how best to address blowing snow effects and whether chemical treatments are required. The need to know when blowing snow will be affecting the roadway, including timing and severity of the event, is critical for the maintenance decision maker. The process of modeling blowing snow within the roadway presents many challenges. These challenges include the ability to effectively determine the snow pack characteristics (e.g., snow pack surface tension, snow pack temperature, snow depth, snow age, and more), the analysis of weather conditions along the roadway, and surrounding roadway vegetation contributing to snow fetch distance. The use of snow pack model data allows for an assessment of snow pack conditions, depth, and temperature. This information is then integrated to provide locations where snow may be affected by the wind and to an extent given in snow mass flux. Once an analysis of snow pack conditions has been determined and route-specific weather information is integrated into the model, a forecast of blowing snow conditions can be produced on a route-by-route basis. This information is valuable to winter maintenance decision makers in the field. However, a mechanism for conveying this information is critical for reviewing and assessing the future risk. The integration of blowing snow information into a maintenance decision support system (MDSS) provides the needed integrated interface for users to access the information. The MDSS can provide users a route-by-route visualization of blowing snow risk along with the severity of the alert that will be affecting the roadway for an extended period into the future. The blowing snow model also provides MDSS information about blowing snow risks, which allows the system to provide precautionary recommendations to maintainers. This information can be invaluable when weather conditions, other than wind, seem to be mundane and nonthreatening, but blowing snow may still present serious maintenance issues. In this paper and presentation the modeling aspects of the blowing snow model will be presented and discussed. The integration of observations and model data will demonstrate how this integration is brought to the route level. A demonstration and case study approach will be shown on how the blowing snow model provides MDSS the information needed to alert maintenance managers of possible issues that may occur due to blowing snow. Also, information will be presented on the effectiveness of the model to assist MDSS in the suppression of deicing chemical when blowing snow is a concern on the roadway.

Language

  • English

Media Info

  • Media Type: Web
  • Pagination: p 169
  • Monograph Title: Winter Maintenance and Surface Transportation Weather. International Conference on Winter Maintenance and Surface Transportation Weather, April 30–May 3, 2012, Coralville, Iowa
  • Serial:

Subject/Index Terms

Filing Info

  • Accession Number: 01371218
  • Record Type: Publication
  • Files: TRIS, TRB
  • Created Date: May 25 2012 10:32AM