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The article presents the methodology used by the Colombia Consortium to negotiate the first transformative agreements (TAs) in Latin America. These TAs are a strategy to manage costs associated with Article Processing Charges (APCs), facilitate the transition to Open Access (OA) and increase the visibility of Colombian publications. The road map for the design of TAs in Colombia is based on a methodology that considers both qualitative and quantitative aspects, with a key element being the analyses the scientific publication trends in Colombian institutions. This methodological route allowed the Colombia Consortium to sign with three commercial publishers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We compare the investment of standalone firms across regions after a positive shock to the investment opportunities generated by a large-scale highway development project. We show that the standalones' investment sensitivity is lower in regions with a higher density of business groups in the local area. We investigate mechanisms driving our results and find support for a financing mechanism whereby banks allocate capital preferentially to group-affiliated firms in responding to the increase in credit demand. Overall, our study documents that business groups have spillover effects on standalone firms. Authors have furnished an Internet Appendix , which is available on the Oxford University Press Web site next to the link to the final published paper online [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to carry out a petrological and geotechnical study of the lateritic soils of Ngaoundal (Adamawa-Cameroon). Hence, geotechnical identification, X-ray difractometry, and chemical analysis (XRF) were used to characterize soils. Field investigations show that the average thickness of the lateritic layers is 1.3 m; the soils encountered are nodular with a silty/clay matrix. The dominant color is dark brown (7.5YR 5/6) with a lumpy structure and silty or clayey texture. Mineralogical analysis (XRD) and chemical data (XRF) show that these materials are made up of quartz (38.27%), goethite (13.98%), gibbsite (10.59%), kaolinite (8.62%), hematite (7.88%), magnetite (8.38%), anatase, and boehmite. These soils are silico-ferrugino-aluminous. Their silica/sesquioxide ratios correspond to those of true laterites. X-ray diffraction analysis of the soil samples revealed the absence of swelling clays. Geotechnical analyses indicate that these soils have specific weights between 2.580 and 2.648 g/cm3. The liquidity limits show an average of 54.5%, with an average plasticity index of 29.73%. According to the (HRB) classification, these soils belong to the class of silty/clayey gravels and sands known as A-2–7. The values for maximum dry density and optimum water content range from 2.040 to 2.188 g/cm3 and from 9.5 to 13.6% respectively. The CBR bearing capacity index shows values ranging from 78.0 to 95.1%, which proves that these materials belong to bearing capacity class S5. The geological and geotechnical data confirm that the Ngaoundal materials are suitable for road construction (sub-base and base layers). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Earlier studies acknowledged that the design speed does not principally assure consistency in the design of highway geometric elements. Methodologies for estimating operating speeds are limited to specific or local traffic conditions and design standards, as in various studies conducted on two-lane and multi-lane highways. The present study develops operating speed models of the vehicle types observed on horizontal curves and tangent sections on two-lane highways in southern parts of India. Geometric features of the curve section and adjacent tangent sections, such as the radius of the curve, curve length, deflection angle, degree of curvature, gradient, carriageway width, and shoulder width, are obtained from the field. The speed data collected at 24 locations on the highway, including curved and tangent gradient sections, are used to analyze and model operating speed. The results indicate that the inverse of the square root of the radius appears to be an influencing parameter for modeling the operating speed of vehicles. The operating speed is sensitive for a curve radius of up to 600 m; thereafter, the operating speed appears insignificant. On tangent sections, the gradient has a larger influence on the operating speeds of all vehicle types. The operating speed models are validated and compared with models available in the literature. The proposed models developed in the present study are helpful to traffic engineers for predicting the operating speed on two-lane highways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lateritic soil, a prevalent geological material in tropical regions, often exhibits poor engineering properties, leading to road pavement failures. Meanwhile, the alarming rise in plastic waste poses environmental concerns. This innovative study explores the potential of utilizing waste plastics as a lateritic soil addictive for sustainable road construction. Varying percentages by weight of shredded waste plastic (2%, 4%, 6%, 8%, and 10%) were incorporated into lateritic soil samples, evaluating its effects on soil geotechnical properties. The results revealed that lateritized plastic (shredded plastic waste and lateritic soil) containing 2% shredded plastic waste gave the optimum maximum dry density of 1.985 g/cm3, and the lateritized plastic containing 10% shredded plastic waste gave the highest optimum moisture content of 18%. However, the lower California bearing ratio obtained on the addition of plastic waste showed that the lateritized plastic is relatively weak and can only be used for roads with low traffic. The incorporation of shredded plastic waste into lateritic soil for stabilization is a promising polymer science-based method. By reducing the need for conventional materials and diverting plastic waste from landfills, this approach contributes to a more environmentally friendly infrastructure supporting the achievement of United Nation Sustainable Development Goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The issue of forming a reliable and sustainable structure of crumb-rubber-modified binder is an important scientific and technical task. The quality of this task will increase the technical and economic efficiencies of road construction materials. This work is dedicated to developing a scientifically justified method of directed thermomechanical devulcanization, which ensures the solubility of the crumb rubber in the complex structure of a polydisperse composite material, preventing the formation of aggregates consisting of unsaturated crumb rubber particles, whose elastic aftereffect causes intensive cracking, especially during low-temperature road operations. The novelty in the first part of this article is due to the fact that, for the first time, the quantitative ratio of the polymer component in the crumb rubber was experimentally determined. The ratio of the polymer component to the total content of the other rubber components in the crumb rubber (CR) was determined to be, on average, 93.3 ± 1.8%. The stabilities of the compositions of crumb rubber from different batches were experimentally studied. The nature of the polymer component in the crumb rubber was determined. A hypothesis was formulated to obtain a thermodynamically stable and sustainable binder modified with crumb rubber. To evaluate the compatibility of hydrocarbon plasticizers with the studied CR samples, the following semi-empirical and thermodynamic compatibility parameters were calculated: Hildebrand solubility parameters based on evaporation energy and surface tension, Barstein's compatibility parameter |X|, Traxler coefficient, and the mass ratio of paraffin naphthene:asphaltenes. It was shown that for the substances under study, it is advisable to justify the choice of plasticizer based on chemical compatibility criteria. It was established that a supramolecular plasticization mechanism occurs in the "hydrocarbon plasticizer–crumb rubber" systems under consideration. In the development of the crumb-rubber-modified binder, it was found that the use of activated crumb rubber (ACR) from large tires does not ensure the achievement of a stable and resilient structure of the crumb-rubber-modified bitumen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Marine heatwaves (MHWs) are extreme weather events that have major impacts on the structure and functioning of marine ecosystems worldwide. Due to anthropogenic climate change, the occurrence of MHWs is predicted to increase in future. There is already evidence linking MHWs with reductions in biodiversity and incidence of mass mortality events in coastal ecosystems. However, because MHWs are unpredictable, the quantification of their effects on communities is challenging.Here, we use the Helgoland Roads long‐term time series (German Bight, North Sea), one of the richest marine time series in the world, and implement a modified before‐after control‐impact (BACI) design to evaluate MHW effect on mesozooplankton communities. Mesozooplankton play an essential role in connecting primary producers to higher trophic levels, and any changes in their community structure could have far‐reaching impacts on the entire ecosystem.The responses of mesozooplankton community to MHWs in terms of community structure and densities occurred mainly in spring and autumn. Abundances of seven taxa, including some of the most abundant groups (e.g. copepods), were affected either positively or negatively in response to MHWs. In contrast, we observed no clear evidence of an impact of summer and winter MHWs; instead, the density of the most common taxa remained unchanged.Our results highlight the seasonally dependent impacts of MHWs on mesozooplankton communities and the challenges in evaluating those impacts. Long‐term monitoring is an important contributor to the quantification of effects of MHWs on natural populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Constructing new roads and upgrading existing roads are two common approaches to address congestion caused by increasing traffic volumes. But they can also impact local communities if roads are built through neighborhoods or existing roads and intersections are widened and placed closer to nearby homes. In this paper, we estimate how local communities are impacted by these changes using data on housing prices near roads and roadway construction projects. We find that homes near major roads sell for less than homes further away, but that congestion-reducing road improvements only lead to small average increases in nearby home prices. Our results suggest that major roads in close proximity negatively impact housing prices by affecting neighborhood aesthetics, and this relationship is not contingent upon the level of traffic on the roads. Our results can help policymakers consider the external costs borne by local communities when conducting cost–benefit analyses of roadway expansions or improvements. • Homes near roadways face price penalty, regardless of traffic on the roadway. • Roadway construction increases home prices only slightly. • Co-located amenities likely mute effect of traffic on home prices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Mobile phone use while driving remains a road safety concern for road transport authorities. • The driving context plays a role in the decision to engage in mobile phone use while driving. • Even after the intention to use the mobile phone while driving is formed, the moment where engagement occurs will be determined by the demands of the driving context. Mobile phone use is one of the most frequent causes of distraction among drivers. While there have been a significant number of studies that have examined individuals' intentions to use a mobile phone while driving, the influence of individuals' in-situ judgement of driving conditions has received considerably less attention. The aim of this investigation was to provide a systematic understanding of how factors associated with the driving context and environment influence a driver's decision to engage in mobile phone use while driving. Following a systematic classification scheme, 41 research articles from the years 2011 to 2020 were reviewed and synthesised to identify the contextual determinants of mobile phone distraction. Overall, the findings provided support for the role that contextual features play in influencing individuals' mobile phone use engagement. This finding was particularly the case in instances where mobile phone tasks required relatively high cognitive and physical demands on an individual, such as texting and/or reading mails. The findings also indicated that as contextual complexity increases, mobile phone use decreases as well. A deeper understanding of the relationship between contextual factors and phone use while driving may aid in the design of more efficient driver support systems and the development of distraction-sensitive road design guides. This understanding can also assist in the identification of mobile phone use hotspots and the improvement of law enforcement and educational strategies to prevent the behaviour. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Automated vehicles equipped with adaptive cruise control systems (ACC-AVs) are prevalent and the ensuing issue is the feasibility of ACC-AVs' operation on the roads. This study investigates the feasibility of road horizontal curve designs for ACC-AVs from a vehicle dynamics perspective. Following the scenario generation framework, we created and tested several scenarios featuring horizontal geometric elements and design speeds, conducting a safety evaluation based on the critical adhesion coefficient, lateral acceleration, lateral-load transfer rate, together with driving comfort indicators. Results indicate that ACC-AV can navigate on road curves designed with a common minimum radius (Rmin_com) effectively at speeds over 60 km/h , comparable to conventional vehicles. However, both Rmin_com and limited minimum radius (Rmin_lim) designs show limitations. Additionally, the feasible radius ranges for ACC-AV reveal the capability to safely handle sharper curves and maintain higher speeds, suggesting potential for adaptable road design in complex environments. Finally, minimum radius ranges were summarized for ACC-AV safe and comfortable operation on road curves, unveiling the potential risks and reminding designers in curve design controls for ACC-AVs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines Vietnam’s state management of public investment in road construction. The development of road transport infrastructure is in extremely high demand as Vietnam undergoes an economic transition. Despite the fact that the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have caused the economy to grow more slowly recently, public investment in the transport industry has increased significantly. Several modern, large-scale road works that have been finished and put into operation are having a significant positive impact on urbanization, connecting regions, and socioeconomic development. However, public investment in road transport construction still has a lot of issues that need to be fixed. The state’s weakness is one of the primary issues that reduces investment efficiency. This study analyzes the state management of public investment in road construction, according to the following contents: legal system and policies; formulation and implementation of public investment plans; inspection and supervision by state management agencies. The method of collecting secondary data and primary data (through sociological investigation) is used and combined with Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software to determine the influencing factors and find out the problems and their causes. Therefore, this study proposes a number of urgent and practical solutions to improve the state management of public investment in road construction and develop a synchronized road transport network. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Demand-responsive transportation (DRT) is a flexible passenger service designed to enhance road efficiency, reduce peak-hour traffic, and boost passenger satisfaction. However, existing optimization methods for initial passenger requests fall short in addressing real-time passenger needs. Consequently, there is a need to develop real-time DRT route optimization methods that integrate both initial and real-time requests. This paper presents a two-stage, multi-objective optimization model for DRT vehicle scheduling. The first stage involves an initial scheduling model aimed at minimizing vehicle configuration, and operational, and CO2 emission costs while ensuring passenger satisfaction. The second stage develops a real-time scheduling model to minimize additional operational costs, penalties for time window violations, and costs due to rejected passengers, thereby addressing real-time demands. Additionally, an enhanced genetic algorithm based on Non-dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm-II (NSGA-II) is designed, incorporating multiple crossover points to accelerate convergence and improve solution efficiency. The proposed scheduling model is validated using a real network in Shanghai. Results indicate that real-time scheduling can serve more passengers, and improve vehicle utilization and occupancy rates, with only a minor increase in total operational costs. Compared to the traditional NSGA-II algorithm, the improved version enhances convergence speed by 31.7% and solution speed by 4.8%. The proposed model and algorithm offer both theoretical and practical guidance for real-world DRT scheduling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This review article provides a comprehensive analysis of the transformative potential of waste plastic in South Africa, with a specific focus on high-density polyethylene-modified bitumen and polyethylene terephthalate plastic fibres asphalt. The review encompasses a wide range of topics, including the environmental and socio-economic impacts of plastic waste, the current state of plastic waste management practices in South Africa, and the potential use of waste plastic in road construction. The aim is to critically evaluate the compatibility of recycled waste plastics as bitumen modifiers and fibre to enhance road performance. Additionally, it explores the challenges and opportunities associated with the incorporation of waste plastic in road construction, shedding light on the environmental, economic and technological aspects. The review also emphasizes the need for targeted interventions and collaborative efforts from the South African government and industry stakeholders to address plastic waste management challenges and promote sustainable infrastructure development. Overall, this review provides valuable insights into the transformative potential of waste plastic in South African road maintenance and offers a roadmap for future research and initiatives in this critical area of sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper addresses the often-neglected economic impacts associated with the supply of hydraulic infrastructure in rural and under-serviced communities in developing countries. We rely on a rich panel dataset including 1319 Senegalese rural households collected in 2016 and 2020, during the deployment of the first phase of the Emergency Program for Community Development (PUDC). By combining propensity score matching (PSM), inverse probability weighting, difference-in-differences, and quantile regression, we find that access to piped water improves employment in the agricultural sector but has no significant impact on household expenditures. After controlling for attrition, through PSM, we find that the employment effect operates through access to a greater quantity of water and a reduction in the time women devote to water fetching chores. Moreover, when bundled with complementary infrastructure interventions such as the construction of rural roads, we find that access to water services generates an even higher impact. The quantile analysis shows that non-poor households seem to benefit more from the provided water supply infrastructure compared to poor households. Finally, when comparing the welfare effect of government-led PUDC water supply with that of community-led initiatives, our findings advocate for the widespread implementation of the former for reasons of cost-effectiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of eco-friendly and efficient alternative binder to conventional Portland cement is a challenging issue that deserves to be paid more attention. The mineral additive-modified magnesium potassium phosphate cement mixture was introduced in sediment solidification recycled as alternative roadbed material. The feasibility of mineral additive-MKPC blend in solidifying sediment and its mechanical performance were probed into deeply through unconfined compressive strength, durability, microstructural and mineralogical tests. The results demonstrated that it existed an optimal mineral additive content where the peak strength was achieved, and an excessive amount caused the strength degradation. The unconfined compressive strength of solidified sediment increased with curing age and exhibited a growing potential. Struvite-k crystals were identified as the major cementing phase in mineral additive-MKPC solidified sediment. C-S-H gels and Ca2P2O7 ċ 2H2O were recognized as secondary phases for fly ash-MKPC blend and MgSiO3 for silica fume-MKPC blend. As the molar ratio of M/P and curing age grew, the total porosity was reduced due to the pore filling of mineral grains and densification of hydrated phases. The strength of solidified sediment after durability tests showed a tendency of first decline and then increase with durability period. Overall, the superior benefits including excellent strength performance, strong resistance to external environmental damage and highly densified microstructure could be expected for mineral additive-MKPC blend in sediment solidification as a promising roadbed filling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quarry fines are secondary materials that can be reused for road construction, commonly after improving their properties through stabilising. To better understand and characterise these recycled materials, we created an image-based, two-dimensional representation of the particles that compose the material. This computational representation enables (1) the quantification of the (area-based) gradation from images, (2) a detailed particle-by-particle characterisation and (3) potentially, random rearrangement of the particles into reconstructed specimens for further computational analyses. The images of cement-stabilised quarry fines were obtained using a scanning electron microscope. The particles were isolated and characterised using image processes and a computational approach (MATLAB code). The techniques and code presented herein can be applied as well to other granular-based materials. The MATLAB code and associated files are available as an open resource in GitHub (). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, inexpensive dual precursors namely rice husk ash (RHA) and quarry dust (QD) were mixed with an alkali solution (NaOH solution) in different mix proportions. Next, the effect of the dual precursors-alkali solutions (geopolymers) on the strength parameters of the different soil-geopolymer mixes subjected to various curing days were assessed. The result obtained from the assessment showed that the dual precursors-alkali solutions improved the strength properties of all the different soil-geopolymer mixes. The optimum soil-geopolymer mix proportion that resulted in the best improvement of the expansive subgrade soil properties was observed at a combination of 15%RHA+15%QD+3M NaOH. Furthermore, micro-pore analyses (porosity and pore size distribution), which were implemented with scanning electron micrographs and an image segmentation technique, local adaptive thresholding algorithm, showed progressive reduction in the porosity of the natural expansive subgrade soil and that of the optimal soil-geopolymer mix proportion cured for 7 and 28 days. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

International climate agreements and government policies, push the road construction industry towards more sustainable practices using alternative materials, new production techniques, and more efficient construction processes. Despite the broad availability of these sustainable solutions, their adoption is slow and uncertain. The reasons behind this remain unclear. This study employs a system innovation perspective to analyze the process that leads to the implementation of sustainable innovations in the Dutch asphalt paving sector. By exploring actors' roles and their interactions at different stages of the process, we aim to identify key aspects influencing the pace and outcome of the innovation implementation process in the industry. The results highlight that (1) the asphalt paving sector is anchored in a project perspective that often overlooks long-term sustainability goals, (2) several key innovation roles are not fully fulfilled, and the absence of a coordinating role is leading to misunderstandings, and (3) monitoring at both the project and sector levels is lacking; there is no holistic assessment of the overall impact of innovations. Overall, the findings suggest that sustainable innovation processes in Dutch asphalt paving remain confined to the niche level, which can be overcome by redistributing actors' responsibilities, addressing the lack of system monitoring, and overcoming the project perspective could help address the challenges in the process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The extension of existing container terminals or the creation of new ones introduces new logistical challenges, including topographic issues and increased distances between the quays and storage yards located several kilometers away from the quay (dry port). These challenges are complex to evaluate analytically and directly impact the acceleration, deceleration, and average speed of a truck which in turn affect the productivity and synchronization of the overall terminal logistics. This paper proposes a transportation simulation model that incorporates detailed descriptions of the topographical and geometrical restrictions. Our simulation model evaluates various scenarios for container transportation logistics, including varying road design terminals and truck fleet size to enhance productivity. A case study from a potential container terminal on Canada's St. Lawrence River is used to demonstrate the simulation model. Several scenarios with different designs are tested and the simulation provides numerical results for supporting decision makers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This descriptive phenomenology study aimed to glean insights from the narratives of Blaan learners, an indigenous community residing in Mindanao. Specifically, the study sought to capture the lived experiences and perspectives of Blaan learners, shedding light on their unique challenges and resilience. Five (5) Blaan learners from Lanao Kapanglao Elementary School were purposively sampled for in-depth interviews. The findings revealed that Blaan learners often traverse dangerous routes to school, assume independence at a young age, and come from large families. These experiences underscore the resilience of Blaan learners amidst adversity. However, they also highlight the significant challenges they face in accessing education and navigating their daily lives. In light of these findings, targeted interventions are recommended to support the educational journey and well-being of Blaan learners. Suggestions include the creation of safe road designs along school routes by the Local Government Unit (LGU), strengthening law enforcement within school zones, equipping learners with safety skills, and implementing weekly feeding programs for Blaan learners and other Indigenous youth. Additionally, initiatives such as counselling sessions addressing early marriage and parental separation among Blaan youth may be beneficial. This study emphasized the importance of understanding the unique experiences of indigenous communities like the Blaan, and advocates for proactive measures to address their specific needs and challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractThis study investigates the effect of urban-rural roads construction on inequality. As the main roads connecting urban and rural areas, the urban-rural roads have greatly influenced the economic growth and poverty alleviation in rural areas. We collect the data of urban-rural roads from 2003 to 2021 and matched with the income inequality and night light intensity data, we find that the impact of urban-rural roads construction on inequality between urban and rural areas will first increase and then rebound, showcasing an inverted U-shaped curve. Further analysis shows that the inverted U-shaped trend could be attributed to the economic growth gap between urban and rural areas. The results in this study provide evidence that a developing country such as China could enhance urban-rural roads construction to reduce inequality between urban and rural areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In modern urban environments, visual sensors are crucial for enhancing the functionality of navigation systems, particularly for devices designed for visually impaired individuals. The high-resolution images captured by these sensors form the basis for understanding the surrounding environment and identifying key landmarks. However, the core challenge in the semantic segmentation of blind roads lies in the effective extraction of global context and edge features. Most existing methods rely on Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs), whose inherent inductive biases limit their ability to capture global context and accurately detect discontinuous features such as gaps and obstructions in blind roads. To overcome these limitations, we introduce Dual-Branch Swin-CNN Net(DSC-Net), a new method that integrates the global modeling capabilities of the Swin-Transformer with the CNN-based U-Net architecture. This combination allows for the hierarchical extraction of both fine and coarse features. First, the Spatial Blending Module (SBM) mitigates blurring of target information caused by object occlusion to enhance accuracy. The hybrid attention module (HAM), embedded within the Inverted Residual Module (IRM), sharpens the detection of blind road boundaries, while the IRM improves the speed of network processing. In tests on a specialized dataset designed for blind road semantic segmentation in real-world scenarios, our method achieved an impressive mIoU of 97.72%. Additionally, it demonstrated exceptional performance on other public datasets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article primarily delves into the automatic generation approach of the park road network. The design of the park road network not only comprehensively takes into account environmental factors like terrain, vegetation, water bodies, and buildings, but also encompasses functional factors such as road coverage and accessibility. It constitutes a relatively complex design task, and traditional design methods rely significantly on the professional proficiency of designers. Based on the park vector terrain, in combination with the graphics skeleton algorithm, this study proposes an automatic generation method of the park road network considering environmental constraints. Through the utilization of the modified Douglas–Peucker algorithm and convex hull operation, the semantic information of environmental constraints is retained, domain knowledge is integrated, the skeleton graph is optimized, and issues such as road smoothness are addressed. This method can not only generate road network schemes rapidly, scientifically, and precisely, but also furnish the requisite digital model for the quantitative evaluation of the road network. Eventually, the study quantitatively assesses the experimental results via the spatial syntax theory to substantiate the efficacy of the method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Amazonian streams, damming caused by road construction changes the system's hydrological dynamics and biological communities. We tested whether the degree of specialization in fish (Bryconops giacopinii) individuals is higher in pristine stream environments with intact ecological conditions than in streams dammed due to the construction of a highway in the Amazon rainforest. To achieve this, stomach content data and stable isotopes (δ13C and δ15N) in tissues with varying isotopic incorporation rates (liver, muscle, and caudal fin) were used to assess the variation in consumption of different prey over time. The indices within‐individual component (WIC)/total niche width (TNW) and individual specialization were employed to compare the degree of individual specialization between pristine and dammed streams. The condition factor and stomach repletion of sampled individuals were used to infer the intensity of intraspecific competition in the investigated streams. The species B. giacopinii, typically considered a trophic generalist, has been shown to be, in fact, a heterogeneous collection of specialist and generalist individuals. Contrary to our expectations, a higher degree of individual specialization was detected in streams dammed by the highway. In dammed streams, where intraspecific competition was more intense, individuals with narrower niches exhibited poorer body conditions than those with broader niches. This suggests that individuals adopting more restricted diets may have lower fitness, indicating that individual specialization may not necessarily be beneficial for individuals. Our results support the notion that intraspecific competition is an important mechanism underlying individual specialization in natural populations. Our results suggest that environmental characteristics (e.g., resource breadth and predictability) and competition for food resources interact in complex ways to determine the degree of individual specialization in natural populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the article, under field conditions (on the lane of a city road for public transport), using modeling and traffic flow analysis methods, the formation of ruts on an asphalt concrete pavement is studied. The maximum total rut depth on the road section under consideration reaches 110 mm. 715 buses and 25 trucks pass along a separate lane of the road per day, the relative rutting impact of which is from 5.68 to 16.41 compared to the design vehicle. The design of the road pavement on the experimental section with a total thickness of 48 cm is too weak for the actual traffic flow, which was the main reason for the premature failure of the road due to unacceptable rut sizes on the asphalt concrete pavement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study used vibration testing signals of soil samples under external loading to identify modal parameters (including natural frequencies and damping ratios) with different compaction degrees. Based on these parameters, a novel approach was proposed for reliable roadbed vibration compaction control and compaction process optimization. The experimental section utilized six soil samples with varying compaction degrees as experimental subjects, using the hammering method as the excitation mode. Subsequently, the frequency response function and modal parameters of the sample system were obtained through the acquisition, analysis, and parameter identification of samples' acceleration signals. Firstly, samples with compaction degrees ranging from 88 % to 97 % primarily exhibited three modes, with the second modal frequency response displaying the weakest amplitude, and the fundamental mode being the dominant one. Additionally, parameter identification results revealed that the fundamental modal frequency exhibited a significant negative exponential growth with increasing compaction degree, while the second and third modal frequencies showed significant linear growth. Furthermore, the average damping ratio also demonstrated a tendency toward linear change with increasing compaction degree. Finally, the feasibility of modal parameters being actively used in practical engineering is discussed. Consequently, this study aimed to propose an indicator system for accurately assessing the bearing level of compacted soils from a modal dynamics perspective and to integrate modal dynamic indicators with density-class indicators into further optimization design work on road compaction processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human activities are related to obtain economic, technical, social and environmental benefits. The road construction process participants and road users have direct or indirect benefits from elaboration of new infrastructure. The number of the benefits received by individual entities is publicly discussed by politicians, lobbyists, experts and other decision-makers without having quantitative estimates of benefits, i.e., often relying on intuition or considering theoretical reasoning. The paper suggests a system of 19 benefit entities (criteria) assigned the ranks given by experts. The study involved three categories of experts, including 35 road engineers, 36 transport engineers and 61 road users. The values of the concordance coefficients obtained as a result of the conducted research were found significantly higher than critical values and showed that the opinions of the experts in each category were consistent (not contradictory). This made it possible to consider the average of the opinions of the expert group as a reliable result of solving the problem. Rank averages were replaced by the normalized weights of criteria using Average Rank Transformation into Weight-Linear (ARTIW-L) and - Nonlinear (ARTIW-N) methods. The global averages of criterion weights were used employing the Inverse Hierarchy for Assessment Main Criteria Importance (IHAMCI) method thus calculating the normalized weights of the road-related classified entities (three main criteria). The findings prove that road users benefit the most (weight 0.3485), the road construction contractor (weight 0.3325) is in the next position and the road owner (investor) takes the weight equal to 0.3190. The generated research data can be used for justifying the rationality of road investment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sustainable management of forestry activities, together with changes in vegetation due to deforestation or degradation, contributes to sediment risk and increases the risk of surface runoff. Changes in meteorological criteria, such as precipitation and temperature, as a result of global climate change are also significant factors affecting sediment risk. In this study, sediment risk was predicted spatially and temporally for 65 provinces in Turkey using criteria related to average forest road construction rates and average wood harvesting rates for the period between 2017 and 2021, as well as climate change models (GFDL-ESM2M, HadGEM2-ES, and MPI-ESM-MR) and their scenarios (RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5) for five-year periods between 2022 and 2096. In addition, changes in sediment risk in the short and long terms—that is, trends—were determined in spatially and temporally. Entropy-based WASPAS and fuzzy clustering analysis were used together to determine sediment risk in this context. The results show that, in terms of sediment risk, criteria related to forestry activities had a higher weight than criteria related to climate change when looking at the overall criterion weights. In addition, it was generally observed that the contribution of the average precipitation criterion to sediment risk increased in weight over five-year periods in the context of climate change models and scenarios. Regarding climate change models and scenarios, it was found that provinces consistently in the highest risk category (R1) over five-year periods were mainly located in the Black Sea and Marmara regions. In addition, provinces showing an increase or decrease in sediment risk trends between two consecutive five-year periods were mostly found in the Black Sea and Mediterranean regions. When evaluating the 15-year time intervals, differences in sediment risk trends were found between the geographical regions. In conclusion, the study results indicate that, regionally, Turkey's northern regions, especially the Black Sea and Marmara regions, as well as the southern Mediterranean and western Aegean regions, will become increasingly vulnerable to sediment risk over time owing to the impact of climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bitumen, a vital component in road pavement construction, exhibits complex chemo-mechanical properties that necessitate thorough characterization for enhanced understanding and potential modifications. Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy emerges as a valuable technique for probing the structural and compositional features of bitumen. This review presents an in-depth exploration of the role of NMR spectroscopy in bitumen characterization, highlighting its diverse applications in determining bitumen content, group composition, molecular dynamics, and interaction with additives. Various NMR techniques, including free induction decay (FID), Carr–Purcell–Meilboom–Gill (CPMG), and Pulsed Field Gradient Stimulated Echo (PFGSE), are discussed in the context of their utility in bitumen analysis. Case studies, challenges, and limitations associated with NMR-based bitumen characterization are critically evaluated, offering insights into potential future research directions. Overall, this review provides a comprehensive overview of the current state-of-the-art in NMR-based bitumen characterization and identifies avenues for further advancement in the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vehicle detection in remote sensing images is a crucial aspect of intelligent transportation systems. It plays an essential role in road planning, congestion control, and road construction in cities. However, detecting vehicles in remote sensing images is challenging due to their small size, high density, and noise. Most current detectors that perform well in conventional scenes fail to achieve better results in this context. Thus, we propose a quad-layer decoupled network to improve the algorithm's performance in detecting vehicles in remote sensing scenes. This is achieved by introducing modules such as a Group Focus downsampling structure, a quad-layer decoupled detector, and the GTAA label assignment method. Experiments demonstrate that the designed algorithm achieves a mean average precision (mAP) of 49.4 and operates at a speed of 3.0 ms on the RTX3090 within a multi-class vehicle detection dataset constructed based on the xView dataset. It outperforms various real-time detectors in terms of detection accuracy and speed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Canadian highway bridge design code (CHBDC) uses the concept of a target reliability index for evaluating the load-carrying capacity of existing bridges. This index, which is based on risk to human life, is related to three aspects of uncertainties inherent in a bridge: element behaviour, system behaviour and inspection level. Analysis is yet another uncertainty in bridge evaluation. It is assumed that all bridge inspections are manual. Citing examples of tests on many instrumented bridges, another level of inspection is proposed, carried out with the help of electronic instruments and tests under controlled vehicle loads. Simple additions to the clauses of the CHBDC are proposed, which can be used to determine the optimum load-carrying capacities of existing bridges where structural monitoring information is available. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pavement deflection is generally obtained by means of Falling Weight Deflectometer (FWD) tests, which provide an evaluation of the structural behavior of highway constructions and indicate the evolution of pavement damage through time. This paper evaluated FWD data, backcalculated moduli, and deflection basin parameters (DBPs) (radius of curvature, area, structural curvature index, base damage index, and base curvature index) to analyze the structural performance of an experimental road pavement test section with four different asphalt pavement segments. The segments had different base layer materials, and they were constituted by one flexible structure (unbound granular base layer), one semi-rigid (cement-treated base layer), one cold recycled asphalt mixture layer stabilized with asphalt emulsion (CRAM-EM), and one cold recycled asphalt mixture layer stabilized with foamed asphalt (CRAM-AF). The field monitoring had eight surveys that included the evaluation of surface distresses and deflection measurements along 3 years of study. The backcalculated moduli of the asphalt layer, base, and remaining pavement structure presented an overall good correlation with the DBPs evaluated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Arkansas Department of Transportation (ARDOT) Maintenance Division is concerned about the use of certain aggregates in asphalt mixture because of their durability and performance issues. Good performance of the pavements can be ensured by selecting good-quality aggregates along with asphalt binders that can produce compatible aggregate–binder systems. The primary goal of this research was to determine proper asphalt binders and aggregates for the construction of highways in Arkansas. Three performance grade (PG) asphalt binders, namely PG 64-22, PG 70-22, and PG 76-22, prepared from two different crude sources, were investigated. This study also included four types of ARDOT-commissioned aggregates, namely gravel, sandstone, limestone, and dolomite, from four quarries throughout Arkansas. Selected properties of asphalt binders and aggregates (e.g., physical, mechanical, and chemical) were evaluated by performing a series of routine laboratory tests. To evaluate the performance of the asphalt mixtures, work of cohesion, work of adhesion, and boiling resistance tests were conducted. These aggregates, binders, and aggregate–binder systems were ranked based on the properties obtained from laboratory tests. In general, any combination of dolomite or limestone with a stiffer binder such as PG 76-22 or PG 70-22 is expected to be superior to an asphalt mixture with either sandstone or gravel. The outcomes of this research will help highway agencies and pavement professionals in selecting suitable asphalt binders and aggregates for long-lasting pavement construction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Road crashes continue to be a leading cause of death globally, with most of these crashes reportedly occurring due to human factors. Traditional road safety assessment utilises geometric and traffic parameters that consider road design inadequacies and identify traffic conflicts. However, previous studies do not represent risky driving behavior and its influence on crash occurrence. Incorporating human factors into safety evaluation is crucial to enhance the prediction and subsequent prevention of unsafe events. This research establishes a methodology to identify risky driving behavior using driving performance measures. These measures are computed based on continuous driving profiles collected using instrumented vehicles from a sample set of drivers on an expressway and are compared with historical crash data. The results indicate the significance of driving performance measures in evaluating road safety. The performance measures find application in collision avoidance systems, assessing the road design quality, testing safety countermeasures and guide for policymakers.. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Land for the Nagas in Northeastern India reflects the local, culturally shaped concepts of physical space, ethnic relations, and social identity. It embodies the political security and the symbolic universe that determine the interpersonal relations and distribution system between various regional groups. Based on an ethnographic exploration, the paper traces how land once imbued in traditions such as sacred lands, monolithic spaces, and ancestral properties are expropriated into state highways. It argues how these new roads become a kind of contact space where the interface between cultural differences, historical memories, and notions of modernity and traditions are conflated and negotiated. The paper seeks to document the issues pertaining to the (re)shaping and (re)configuration of ethnic landscapes through the intrusion of the roadscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Road safety assessment is an essential step in the management of transportation projects. The proactive approach in the safety assessment considers the pre-construction stage to reduce the likelihood of road accidents. This research aims to assess the risk of road infrastructure in Iraq by applying the most recent methodology based on road features and supported traffic data. The selected methodology significantly contributes to enhancing a proactive approach to road safety and incorporating risk assessment in the planning and design stages of road projects. A segment of 15km from the beginning of the Latifiya expressway was selected for this study and assessed using the international road assessment program methodology. Data on road features and traffic were collected for this goal; where data on 38 aspects of road features is collected. The traffic data includes traffic volume and spot speed. Then these data were coded and processed using VIDA online web. The assessment results were presented for three road user groups: vehicle riders, pedestrians, and motorcyclists. The results showed that the assessed segment has a high-risk level; 1 to 3 stars for vehicle riders and 1 star for motorcyclists and pedestrians. Countermeasures were presented, and their efficiency was tested to raise the star rating for all road user groups to five stars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The rapidly expanding Himalayan road network connects rural mountainous regions. However, the fragility of the landscape and poor road construction practices lead to frequent mass movements alongside roads. In this study, we investigate fully or partially road-blocking landslides along National Highway (NH-7) in Uttarakhand, India, between Rishikesh and Joshimath. Based on an inventory of >300 landslides along the ∼250 km long corridor following exceptionally high rainfall during September and October 2022, we identify the main controls on the spatial occurrence of mass-movement events. Our analysis and modeling approach conceptualizes landslides as a network-attached spatial point pattern. We evaluate different gridded rainfall products and infer the controls on landslide occurrence using Bayesian analysis of an inhomogeneous Poisson process model. Our results reveal that slope, rainfall amounts, lithology and road widening are the main controls on landslide occurrence. The individual effects of aggregated lithozones are consistent with previous assessments of landslide susceptibilities of rock types in the Himalayas. Our model spatially predicts landslide occurrences and can be adapted to other rainfall scenarios, thus having potential applications for efficiently allocating efforts for road maintenance. To this end, our results highlight the vulnerability of the Himalayan road network to landslides. Climate change and increasing exposure along this pilgrimage route will likely exacerbate landslide risk along the NH-7 in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The cumulative deformation and fatigue failure of roadbeds induced by dynamic loads are fundamental considerations in road traffic design. To gain a more comprehensive understanding of the impact of drainage conditions and loading cycles on the performance of roadbeds composed of granite residual soil in southern China under various loading modes, this study conducted high-cycle dynamic triaxial tests using a DDS-70 dynamic triaxial apparatus. Through analysis of sample deformations, pore pressure development, and changes in critical cyclic stress ratio under different simulated waveforms, it was observed that the simulated waveform significantly influences the dynamic characteristics of the soil, with the half-sine wave proving effective in simulating the complex dynamic stress caused by traffic vehicles. Meanwhile, the study revealed uncertainties in the development of cumulative deformation under undrained conditions, thus indicating a need for dynamic tests to be conducted under drained conditions to more accurately replicate the effects of traffic loads. Additionally, the deformation of samples at 1000 cycles can serve as a crucial reference for estimating final deformation, which is essential for determining sample types and obtaining key parameters of foundation soil. This approach can help reduce testing workload and save time and costs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a UAV-based road illumination measurement system and evaluates its performance through experiments. The system employs a HUBSAN Zino 2+ UAV, STM32F103RCT6 microcontroller, BH1750 illuminance sensor, and GPS and integrates flight, processing, measurement, cloud platform, obstacle avoidance, communication, and power supply units via the OneNET cloud platform. Both hardware and software designs were implemented, using the Z-score algorithm to handle outliers in illumination data. The system showed a single-point measurement error rate of 1.14% and a MAPE of 5.08% for multi-point measurements. In experiments, the system's horizontal and vertical illuminance RMSE were 1.92 lx and 1.75 lx, respectively. The real-time visualization interface improved operational efficiency, cutting labor costs by half and time costs by nearly four-fifths. UAV control and monitoring from the roadside ensured safety during measurements. The system's efficiency and wide measurement range enabled extended experiments, collecting illuminance data across multiple horizontal and vertical planes. This resulted in the creation of both horizontal and innovative vertical-plane illuminance distribution maps. These findings provide valuable data for evaluating road lighting quality, enhancing road traffic safety, and improving road illumination design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The influence of road infrastructure over the severity of road accidents, in particular some specific features of it, represents the subject of this study. Generally, when an accident occurs, its causes are represented by a number of factors such as driver experience, fatigue, driving under the influence of alcohol and other psychoactive substances, road configuration, weather conditions, speeding, distracted driving, and unsafe road infrastructure. Road design is a key factor regarding the safety of all traffic participants. In this paper, the influence of unsafe roadside element designs on the incidence of traffic accidents, the degree of vehicle passenger injury, and the level of car damage were investigated. The present study was inspired by the high number of accidents produced on European route E68 (DN1) in Romania, a significant part of which was generated and accentuated by the effects of improper roadside design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Improving the physico-mechanical characteristics of bitumen is a constant and pressing problem in road construction. The issue is solved by modifying bitumen with various additives, one of which is a nanostructured modifier. This paper examines the effect of adding a natural mineral, shungite, to bitumen from the Koksu deposit (Kazakhstan) after grinding under different conditions. The mechanochemical activation of shungite made it possible to obtain samples with an average particle diameter of up to 3 μm. Using scanning electron microscopy, nanostructured particles with sizes of up to 100 nm were discovered in their structure. The effect of nanostructured shungite on the rheological characteristics of bitumen—elasticity and loss moduli, and loss tangent at high and low temperatures—was studied. The transition temperatures of bitumen from the viscoelastic to the liquid state were established, and their shift to the region of elevated temperatures when modified with ground shungite are shown. The presence of organic and inorganic components in the composition of shungite—carbon, silica, and metal oxides—has a beneficial effect on the rheological properties of bitumen by forming bonds with resinous asphaltene components of bitumen. The use of bitumen modified with nanostructured shungite makes it possible to replace the polymer modifier with a natural mineral to improve the quality of the road surface. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research investigates the lane width standards and guidelines implemented by various State Departments of Transportation (DOTs) to reduce vehicle speeds and enhance road safety. Lane width reduction is often perceived as a strategy to mitigate speed and improve safety. Still, its effectiveness and implications vary across different contexts, including regions, urban/rural settings, or other geometric design features. Drawing from interviews with five State DOTs and a review of their road design manuals, this study aims to identify suggested lane widths depending on the contexts, design exception process when narrowing or widening lane widths, and introduce representative before/after studies. The findings indicate that State DOTs tend to have lower recommended lane widths in urban areas than in rural areas. Moreover, lane width standards among these states vary due to several factors, including the geographical location of roadways (urban or rural areas), design or posted speeds, traffic volume, road classification, and geometric road design features. Design exceptions are required if the existing or proposed design element is incompatible with both AASHTO and department governing criteria. In conclusion, the findings will provide valuable insights and recommendations for policymakers, transportation planners, and road engineers to inform optimal lane width and decision-making processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Promoting the deployment and application of embedded systems in complex forest scenarios is an inevitable developmental trend in advanced intelligent forestry equipment. Unstructured roads, which lack effective artificial traffic signs and reference objects, pose significant challenges for driverless technology in forest scenarios, owing to their high nonlinearity and uncertainty. In this research, an unstructured road parameterization construction method, "DeepLab-Road", based on tight coupling of multisource information is proposed, which aims to provide a new segmented architecture scheme for the embedded deployment of a forestry engineering vehicle driving assistance system. DeepLab-Road utilizes MobileNetV2 as the backbone network that improves the completeness of feature extraction through the inverse residual strategy. Then, it integrates pluggable modules including DenseASPP and strip-pooling mechanisms. They can connect the dilated convolutions in a denser manner to improve feature resolution without significantly increasing the model size. The boundary pixel tensor expansion is then completed through a cascade of two-dimensional Lidar point cloud information. Combined with the coordinate transformation, a quasi-structured road parameterization model in the vehicle coordinate system is established. The strategy is trained on a self-built Unstructured Road Scene Dataset and transplanted into our intelligent experimental platform to verify its effectiveness. Experimental results show that the system can meet real-time data processing requirements (≥12 frames/s) under low-speed conditions (≤1.5 m/s). For the trackable road centerline, the average matching error between the image and the Lidar was 0.11 m. This study offers valuable technical support for the rejection of satellite signals and autonomous navigation in unstructured environments devoid of high-precision maps, such as forest product transportation, agricultural and forestry management, autonomous inspection and spraying, nursery stock harvesting, skidding, and transportation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]