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PIARC (World Road Association), founded in 1909 and comprising 125 member governments from all over the world, is the global forum for exchange of knowledge and experience on roads, road transport policies and practices. With consultative status to the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations, the Association is contributing to a stable and sustainable global development of the road and transport sector.

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Publications Routes/Roads Winter Service

This page lists publications (Routes/Roads articles, Congresses proceedings) of PIARC in the field of winter service. These publications are classified chronologically.

  • Development of Autonomous Snow Blowers Using the Quasi-Zenith Satellite System on Expressways in Japan

    The rotary snow blower vehicle operated for removing accumulated snow on road shoulders must be performed even in conditions of a poor visibility due to a snowstorm or road markings completely covered by snow. The operators of the vehicle must pay full attention to avoid contacting road structures and ordinary cars passing just beside the snow blower. Therefore, we have developed a high-precision snow blower positioning device using a quasi- zenith satellite system and a high-precision expressway [...]

  • The SISMET Method: a Preliminary Assessment Tool to Determine Seismic Risk on Urban and Peri-Urban Road Infrastructures in a Crisis Management Context

    The aim of the SISMET method is to carry out a preliminary seismic risk assessment on existing road infrastructures in an urban or peri-urban context. At the scale of a route or a route section, this method is based on the definition and assessment of vulnerability criteria relating to the various structures that comprise it (bridges, retaining walls, tunnels and road slopes). These vulnerability criteria are then combined with the various direct and indirect hazard parameters which could threaten [...]

  • Development of Road Visibility Inspection System Using Driving Video Images Recorded by On-board Video Camera

    In Hokkaido, Japan, every winter, road closures frequently occur due to blowing snow and snowdrifts created on roadways. Road inspectors are patrolling several times per day to monitor visibility state throughout winter. The real-time road visibility information that is collected by the road inspectors allows road maintenance managers to prevent accidents in winter and minimize the duration of road closures from blowing snow. The problem is that the inspectors boarding patrol vehicles report visibility [...]

  • Towards a More Resilient Spanish Road Network

    Several studies state the increasing impacts related to weather in transport infrastructures, both related to extreme events and slow-onset processes. Road transport infrastructures are not an exception, finding that several road elements are becoming more vulnerable to climate change all over the world. Only in Spain, 45% of the main network and 4% of the total length is somehow impacted by climate [CEDEX, 2018], These impacts affect road’s safety and functionality; therefore, maintenance strategies [...]

  • Artificial intelligence Surface Temperature Prediction Model

    In a mild climate where temperatures are often close to freezing, determining which parts of a road network should be salted on a given night is challenging. Accurate, granular forecasts of road conditions are needed to avoid unnecessary salting whilst maintaining safety. We present an Al road surface temperature prediction model trained using data from a network of 112 sensors across Kent in the Southeast of England. Using weather forecasts and location specific features (elevation, road type, [...]