摘要: |
It is widely accepted that road traffic safety is a significant public health issue. One of the
effective ways to improve road traffic safety is analyzing crash data to understand where
traffic accidents occur, identify associated spatial and temporal patterns, and determine
causation. In the State of New Mexico, locations of traffic accidents are currently
visualized using a variety of static maps. Although these statics maps are easier to create
and producers can control how users view the data, users cannot customize these maps
to meet their special needs. That being said, new maps need to be created for any update
or modification. More importantly, these static maps are not able to visualize crash density
information because users cannot zoom in or zoom out, and hence they cannot be used
to identify any associated spatial and temporal patterns. Subsequently, it is challenging if
not impossible for users to conduct additional analyses to determine the causes of traffic
crashes in an efficient, effective, and accurate manner. To solve the problems inherent
with the current static maps, this research project will focus on exploring the utility of
dynamic and interactive web mapping and visualization techniques to visualize and
analyze traffic crash data with the aim of helping transportation planners, engineers, and
policymakers determine the causes of traffic crashes and identify high-crash locations
and other associated spatial and temporal patterns, and ultimately, achieving improved
safety, enhanced resiliency, and increased efficiency for road users.
The project team consists of researchers from the Department of Civil, Construction, and
Environmental Engineering and the Earth Data Analysis Center (EDAC) at the University
of New Mexico (UNM) along with two NMDOT divisions, including the Asset Management
and Planning Division and the Traffic Safety Bureau. The foundation for this research is
based on the principal investigators’ (PIs’) success in prior research on using various
technologies in transportation infrastructure management and transportation safety. |