Incident response: crew scheduling and rerouting of hazmat carriers

Incident response strategies deal with the resource allocation and minimum risk re-routing of hazardous material carriers in response to traffic incidents. Such strategies also address the effect of loss in coverage due to the non- availability of response vehicles. In addition, the effect of an incident on hazmat carriers that are presented in the local vicinity is that the resulting traffic congestion considerably increases the risk of exposure for motorists. In such a situation, the hazmat carrier needs to be re- routed through a safer path. We have proposed mathematical models that address each of the two problems. The incident response model identifies an optimal allocation of response agency units and their routing in the even of traffic incidents in real-time, while also taking into consideration the response requirements for future demands. The hazmat re- routing model determines an optimal diversion route in a network using multiple risk-based objective functions to re- route Hazmat carriers in the event of an incident occurring along the prescribed route. Mathematical programming formulations are presented for each case, and solution procedures are outlined. Some computational experience is also provided.