Selecting rail grade crossing investments with a decision support system

Abstract The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has developed a series of rail and rail-related analysis tools that assist FRA officials, Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs), state Department of Transportation (DOT), and other constituents in evaluating the cost and benefits of potential infrastructure projects. To meet agency objectives, the FRA wants to add a high-speed rail grade crossing analysis tool to its package of rail and rail-related intermodal software products. This paper presents a conceptual decision support system (DSS) that can assist officials in achieving this goal. The paper first introduces the FRA's objectives and the role of cost benefit analysis in achieving these objectives. Next, there is a discussion of the models needed to assess the feasibility of proposed high-speed rail grade crossing investments and the presentation of a decision support system (DSS) that can deliver these models transparently to users. Then, the paper illustrates a system session and examines the potential benefits from system use.

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