Seeking pareto-optimal paths for hazardous material transportation

Abstract

<P>HAZARDOUS MATERIAL TRANSPORTATION FACES MULTIPLE, OFTEN CONFLICTING, OBJECTIVES RANGING FROM TRAVEL COSTS TO SAFETY AND SECURITY CONCERNS. CONSEQUENTLY, HAZMAT SHIPMENTS CAN BE ROUTED ALONG SEVERAL EFFICIENT, OR PARETO-OPTIMAL, PATHS THAT OFFER DIFFERENT LEVELS OF COMPROMISE. TO SELECT THE BEST PATH FROM THIS POTENTIALLY LARGE SET OF ROUTES, THE DECISION-MAKER IS OFTEN ASKED TO STATE HIS/HER PREFERENCES IN TERMS OF A WEIGHTED AVERAGE OF THE OBJECTIVES. DESPITE THE INTRINSIC RATIONALE FOR USING THIS POPULAR METHOD, IT DOES NOT ALLOW FOR MUCH FLEXIBILITY. AN ALTERNATIVE NON-CONCLUSIVE APPROACH IS PROPOSED TO PROVIDE THE DECISION-MAKER WITH AN OVERVIEW OF THE ROUTING POSSIBILITIES WITHOUT THE NEED TO GENERATE ALL PARETO-OPTIMAL PATHS OR TO KNOW HIS/HER PREFERENCES BEFOREHAND. THE METHOD, IMPLEMENTED WITHIN GIS-BASED DECISION-HELPING TOOL, IS APPLIED TO A HAZMAT ROUTING PROBLEM ON SINGAPOREA??S ROAD NETWORK WITH UP TO EIGHT LINEAR DETERMINISTIC OBJECTIVES FUNCTIONS.</P>