United States Department of Transportation
i
Strategic location of satellite salt storage for roadway snow and ice control in Vermont.
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2015-01-01
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[PDF-1.95 MB]
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Abstract:Roadway snow and ice control operations can account for as much as 10% of VTrans annual budget. Important
considerations for planning RSIC operations are the locations and quantities of surface-treatment materials like
salt. In this paper, the use of satellite salt facilities (SSF) is examined, and a novel, real-world approach for
locating SSFs is developed. We also demonstrate a method for ranking the effectiveness of individual SSFs with
respect to their reduction of the distance vehicles must travel to reload salt. The approach is demonstrated using
the actual federal-aid roadway network for the state of Vermont, and a locally optimal SSF location is identified for
each of the existing service territories in the state.
The results of an informal survey of satellite-salt siting practices amongst snow-belt DOTs are also reported. A
critical aspect to siting new SSFs is the ability to utilize existing right-of-way around interstates, and survey
respondents note the need to explore public-private partnerships with landowners adjacent to the state highway
right-of-way who may be willing to sell or lease small portions of cleared land for use as SSFs. Using the
information from the survey, the research team compares a smaller set of “ready-to-use” SSF locations (with
adequate right-of-way) to the locally-optimized SSF locations.
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