The U.S. Federal Highway Administration winter road Maintenance Decision Support System (MDSS): Recent enhancements & refinements

In an effort to mitigate the challenges associated with winter maintenance decisions, the United States Federal Highway Administration initiated a project aimed at developing a winter road Maintenance Decision Support System (MDSS). The goals of the MDSS project are to construct a functional prototype MDSS that can provide objective guidance to winter road maintenance decision makers concerning the appropriate treatment strategies (treatment types, timing, rates, and locations) to use to control roadway snow and ice during adverse winter weather events, and develop a prototype that will also serve as a catalyst for additional research and development by the private sector. To date, five versions of the MDSS prototype code have been made freely available to the surface transportation stakeholder community. The demonstration prototype uses current weather observations and numerical model predictions from the United States National Weather Service to create route-specific analyses and forecasts (out to 48 hours) of atmospheric conditions. The current version of the system uses METRo, an energy and mass balance model developed by Environment Canada, to generate predictions of pavement conditions along each route of interest. Treatment recommendations, which are based on standard rules of practice for effective deicing and antiicing operations, are constructed using current and forecasted atmospheric and road condition information. Forecast data, along with treatment recommendations, are presented to end users via an interactive Java-based display. Through this interface, users can examine and select recommended treatment strategies produced by the system, as well as investigate alternative courses of action and ascertain the anticipated consequences of action or inaction. Over the last three years, the FHWA MDSS prototype has been demonstrated in Colorado. During this period, the system was accessible to maintenance managers in the Denver Metropolitan area. As a result of the demonstration activities, the MDSS has undergone a number of recent improvements and refinements, which have been based primarily on end user feedback and lessons learned. This paper provides a comprehensive overview of the FHWA MDSS Release 5.0 prototype, including the latest system enhancements and changes.