Methodology to Map Routes from Truck Permit Database, Using a Linear Reference System and Network Analysis

Trucking companies can obtain permits from state agencies allowing them to haul oversize and overweight (OSOW) loads. Most permit systems assign a specific route to be followed that accounts for various network travel restrictions. The routes assigned in these permits can provide a wealth of information for different types of transportation analyses. Unfortunately, the permit data are not always generated by a geographic information system (GIS) or archived in a manner that facilitates analysis in a GIS platform. This paper presents a methodology that was developed to process archived permit records from the West Virginia Department of Transportation (DOT) so that the records could be imported into a GIS and plotted by using the existing West Virginia DOT linear referencing system (LRS). Some agencies do not have a GIS-based OSOW permitting system, and those that use a GIS permitting system are still faced with the challenge of integrating archive data with existing GIS–LRS platforms. The methodology presented here should be widely applicable for those facing such challenges. The automated procedure was able to assign an LRS code and map 91.4% of the permits that contained route data for the month of July 2011.