01592013

Component

Snowdrifts on roads create serious safety problems in Hokkaido, Japan. Snow transport is commonly used for assessing hazardous conditions resulting from snowdrifts on road; however, it is difficult to measure the snow transport onsite directly. The present study objectives were as follows: (a) to propose a model for estimating snow transport according to differential weighted intensity of power spectrum (DWIPS) based on road images recorded by closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras installed along the road, and (b) to determine whether the snow transport values determined using DWIPS are consistent with snow transport values given by a model that is based on a modified Tabler model fitted to winter weather conditions in Hokkaido (the Hokkaido model). The coefficients of determination of overall data between snow transport calculated in the two models proposed in the present study and snow transport calculated by the Hokkaido model were approximately 0.5 in the absence of snowfall. It might be possible to use the two proposed models, which are based on road images, to estimate snow transport on roads. Snow transport determined according to DWIPS better reflects the actual snow surface conditions due to the use of onsite conditions. The more cost-efficient solution for estimating snow transport would be to use the two proposed models according to DWIPS. In Hokkaido, over 1,300 CCTV cameras are already available. These models have the potential to contribute to effective countermeasures for hazardous locations on roads in winter, because road administrators would be able to determine locations made hazardous by blowing snow based on transport data provided by the two proposed models. The two models have great potential for enabling the measurement of snow transport at points along the road.

This paper was sponsored by TRB committee AHD65 Standing Committee on Winter Maintenance. Alternate title: Development of Snow Transport Estimating Models Based on Road Images.

01584066

16-3287

English

20p

2016

Transportation Research Board 95th Annual Meeting

Digital/other

Figures; Photos; References; Tables

Cameras; Closed circuit television; Estimating; Image analysis; Maintenance management; Snow; Snowdrifts; Weather conditions

Hokkaido (Japan)

Highways; Maintenance and Preservation; I62: Winter Maintenance

Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting 2016 Paper #16-3287

TRIS, TRB, ATRI

Jan 12 2016 5:27PM