GradeX: A Decision Support Tool for Hot Spot Identification and Countermeasure Analysis of Highway-Railway Grade Crossings

GradeX is a decision-support tool that could be used by railway safety engineers and decision-makers in Canada to identify and target grade crossing hotspots, evaluate countermeasures, and prioritize safety improvement projects. This paper provides an overview of this tool, including: a) the various decision support needs arising in grade crossing safety work; b) the system framework and components of GradeX; c) the alternative methodologies for hotspot identification, and c) the methodology for evaluating the effectiveness of countermeasures.