Improved Resiliency of Transportation Networks through Connected Mobility

2019PDFTech ReportZiehl, Paul H.Pang, WeichiangMullen, Robert LAnay, RafalWonoto, NixonUniversity of South CarolinaCenter for Connected Multimodal Mobility, Clemson UniversityUnited States. Department of Transportation. Federal Highway AdministrationCenter for Connected Multimodal Mobility, Clemson UniversityUnited StatesAsset managementBridge management systemsBridgesDisaster resilienceRetrofittingStructural analysisStructural connectionTechnology transferBridgeretrofitonline monitoringearthquakefragilityoptimizationtool development69A3551747117Final Report (August 2017 \u2013 Dec. 2018)A significant number of bridges (older bridges in particular) in the Southeastern and Central region of United States have been designed and constructed according to older seismic provisions. Based on an article by Wong et al. (2005), the economic loss from the Charleston region could reach over $14 billion if the 1886 Charleston earthquake were to happen again. Due to outdated seismic design strategies used for older bridges, recent research has investigated potential damage in Charleston. However, most of these investigations do not account for the simultaneous aspects of bridge importance (such as centrality, historical significance, and traffic capacity). Furthermore, these prior investigations do not consider the actual detailing of critical structural connections, such as the critical pile to bent cap connection. This connection region is depended upon for energy dissipation while simultaneously providing structural integrity during an event. Full-scale experimental studies performed at the University of South Carolina were used to assess projected performance of these connections in a seismic event. This project develops a new tool that is informed with actual structural behavior gained through full-scale experimental investigations and combines centrality, historical significance, and traffic capacity to assess expected damage. The results are useful for informing placement of monitoring systems, identification of potential retrofit strategies, and optimizing network performance. One goal of the work is technological transfer. The research findings can be used to assist the Department of Transportation in identification of the most critical bridges in the network for purposes of instrumentation, meaning which bridges should be monitored and, for those bridges, which specific regions should be monitored to rapidly assess damage after a seismic event. This information can then be utilized for routing of traffic and for the assessment of potential retrofitting strategies, thereby improving reliability of the transportation system. The tool runs on Matlab and includes transportation network and seismic demand visualization. Results are presented in sets of graphics and tables through a multi-window graphical user interface.104