FATE group decision support system in transportation decision making

Graduation date: 2003Two interesting challenges have been created in the traditional transportation\ud planning process through recent adoption of more interactive roles by Federal,\ud State and local transportation agencies and of those representing the communities\ud being impacted by proposed transportation projects. First, the decision-making\ud groups that formerly included solely transportation and related professionals now\ud consist of professionals from state and local agencies and other stakeholders\ud impacted by those proposed projects. Furthermore, the economic justification\ud methodologies commonly used, such as the benefit/cost ratio, no longer provide a\ud sufficient means for evaluation since they now must take account of non-quantifiable\ud or qualitative impacts, such as local quality of life and sustainable\ud development. These new challenges require a new way of thinking, and a new\ud methodology to handle them.\ud A new methodology is required not only to take qualitative performances into\ud consideration, but also to accommodate the diversities created by those in the\ud decision-making process. This research focuses on the alternative evaluation stage\ud as it often demonstrates the above challenges. The objective of the proposed\ud methodology is to develop "a continuous process of learning and understanding\ud through communicative means by virtue of a fair and open framework in\ud developing the group consensus rather than relying solely on the STATUS QUO."\ud The new methodology that combines the advantages of three unrelated components\ud is proposed to reduce the complexities in complex decision situations. The three\ud components include the conflict resolution model (SANTA), the analytical method\ud (AHP), and the group decision support system (GDSS). The proposed\ud methodology also explores a new way to take advantage of the Internet which\ud allows decision makers to make their decisions from any where at any time.\ud A small-scaled pilot study was set up to test the methodology and the software\ud developed according to the framework outlined by the proposed methodology.\ud Many benefits are discovered by the participants' observations without their prior\ud knowledge about the methodology and the software. Those benefits include\ud Flexibility, Accessibility, Transparency, and Efficiency, or FATE. There are two\ud possible applications of this new methodology, i.e., in real-world problem-solving\ud situations and as a learning tool