Advisory Committee Chair
Wilbur A Hitchcock
Advisory Committee Members
Michiael Anderson
Fouad H Fouad
Jason T Kirby
Virginia P Sisiopiku
Document Type
Dissertation
Date of Award
2010
Degree Name by School
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) School of Engineering
Abstract
The US is dependent upon a functioning transportation network for many aspects of daily life, and those aspects that become largely important during times of disaster. For example, emergency medical response is a crucial activity that relies upon a functioning transportation network during regular daily operations as well as during times of emergency. The US has experienced several natural and manmade devastating events within the past decade including the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, Hurricanes Ivan, Katrina and Rita, and record flooding in Tennessee. When disasters occur, the potential of disrupting various infrastructures either individually or simultaneously exists. During a disaster, a debilitated transportation network is one of the greatest concerns because a functioning transportation network is required for effective response and recovery efforts. Therefore, it is important for transportation officials to know how to proceed, including with what agencies they may be able to coordinate response efforts. A large area lacking in disaster response is the effort related to the collaboration between the state Department of Transportation (DOT) and Emergency Management Agency (EMA). Therefore, the research objectives of this study were to identify the state-of-knowledge for transportation emergency management in the US, present current collaboration and coordination procedures between state EMAs and DOTs, present areas in which collaboration may be improved, and provide a best practices document for states agencies to consult.
Recommended Citation
Watson, Stephanie Victoria, "Pre-Disaster Planning for Transportation Infrastructure Recovery" (2010). All ETDs from UAB. 3280.
https://digitalcommons.library.uab.edu/etd-collection/3280