Virtual Learning
MPC Research: Updating and Implementing the Grade Severity Rating System (GSRS) for Wyoming Mountain Passes (MPC-540)
- Nov 20, 2019
Virtual Learning (desktop/laptop and mobile devices)
The above opportunity and more can be accessed by visiting the TLN Learning Management System (LMS).
Description
The presentation will be a discussion about an update to the Grade Severity Rating System (GSRS), which is a system that recommends safe descent speeds for trucks on steep downgrades. The need to update the GSRS will be discussed. This includes changes in truck characteristics including aerodynamic designs, brake features and engine characteristics over the intervening decades since the development of the GSRS. The presentation will describe selection and instrumentation of a test truck, and field tests conducted to update the GSRS. This will then be followed by a practical demonstration on how to derive maximum descent speeds for trucks from the GSRS. The second part of the presentation will briefly describe the results of an analysis undertaken to evaluate the safety effectiveness of downgrade warning signs. A survey of potential applications of intelligent transportation systems (ITS) to improve mountain pass safety will also be briefly discussed.
Speaker(s)
Milhan Moomen, PhD, got his BSc. degree from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in Ghana. He then worked for Ghana Highway Authority as a contracts engineer. He subsequently received an MSc. from Purdue University in 2016 where he researched on bridge infrastructure management. He obtained a PhD in civil engineering in August 2019 with a research focused on truck safety from the University of Wyoming. Dr. Moomen is currently working as a postdoctoral research associate with the Wyoming Technology Transfer Centre at the University of Wyoming.
Target Audience
Highway and Traffic Safety, Highway Patrol, Designers and any others who are involved in the decision making process for developing and adjusting posted speed limits.