Abstract

In the era of connectivity and automation, the prospective vehicular applications of these technologies go beyond transportation operations and traffic management. Connected and automated vehicles (CAVs) are capable of centralized control, information sharing through connectivity, and integrated surveillance. Also, CAVs are readily amenable to innovative design concepts, including disease detection devices in the interior design that could inherently help reduce the propagation of infectious disease. The first chapter of this study attempts to shed light on the operation of CAVs during a pandemic to decrease the infection risk in a community. In this regard, a literature review on the fundamental concepts of epidemiologic modeling is presented, and a population-based epidemic model is proposed to capture the effects of transportation initiatives (including new “modes” such as CAVs) on infection risk disease and propagation. The proposed model can incorporate different transportation modes that have different capacities and disease transmission rates. Next, the report discusses a wide range of disease control policies and interventions that could help minimize the spread of a pandemic. Then the study introduces the features, structure, and operational concept of specially designed CAVs that provide safe and clean mobility services. The prospective efficacy of these special CAVs in controlling a pandemic is investigated using the proposed epidemiologic model, and this is demonstrated using a synthetic transportation network in the specific context of the COVID-19 pandemic. With CAV ability to operate without a human driver, there is one less person in the vehicle, thereby reducing infection risk. Also, CAVs could be leveraged for contact-free delivery of goods and services during periods of lockdown or quarantine, thereby minimizing person-to-person contact. The study then proposes an evaluation methodology and several metrics that could be used by transportation and health agencies to assess the effectiveness of CAV-related pandemic control interventions. The second part of the study discusses prospective applications of vehicle connectivity and automation in managing disaster events. The report presents a synthesis of literature on this subject, identifies the various types of disasters and stages of infrastructure system disruption thereof, and presents ways to leverage CAV capabilities at each stage not only to build infrastructure resilience but also to serve populations during such events. In sum, this study shows that CAVs can potentially assist in monitoring and responding to pandemics and disasters, and therefore, hold promise for enhancing preparedness and resilience in such crises in the future.

Date

9-2023

DOI

10.5703/1288284317736

Download

Share

COinS