Sara Moridpour

RMIT University | RMIT · Civil and Infrastructure Engineering Discipline, School of Engineering

Nowadays, road maintenance is a crucial planning task for all road authorities across the world, making them spend vast amounts of money on identification and rehabilitation programmes every year. Thus, many researchers, road engineers, and decision-makers have turned to a system called pavement management system, the critical step of which is pave...

Maintaining the efficiency of road pavement is essential to achieving the highest road performance and comfort for road users. Pavement monitoring plays a significant role in maintaining the sustainability of road networks. Additionally, assessments have been performed using different equipment and devices or through visual inspections to determine...

Random field Monte Carlo (MC) reliability analysis is a robust stochastic method to determine the probability of failure. This method, however, requires a large number of numerical simulations demanding high computational costs. This paper explores the efficiency of machine learning (ML) models and Artificial Neural Networks used as surrogate model...

Machine learning (ML) algorithms are increasingly used as surrogate models to increase the efficiency of stochastic reliability analyses in geotechnical engineering. This paper presents a highly efficient ML-aided reliability technique that is able to accurately predict the results of a Monte Carlo (MC) reliability study and yet performs 500 times...

Older adults are an important part of the world’s population. Many researchers have worked on walking as a mode of transport and measuring walking access. However, considering older adults (aged 65 and over) walk time, older population, and older pedestrians’ safety to measure walking accessibility has not been widely discussed. This study proposes...

Pavement monitoring plays a vital role in maintaining sustainable road network conditions and provides road users with satisfactory comfort riding. Regular and routine monitoring provide clear information on road conditions and the level of damage to pavement surfaces. In this study, a vibration-based method was used as a monitoring technique to ev...

The development of a public transport accessibility index for older travellers using total travel time is not a subject of frequent discussion. This study proposes a public transport accessibility index (EPTAI) which considers older peoples’ travel time and the populations of the second-smallest statistical areas according to census data. EPTAI ide...

The development of a public transport accessibility index for older travellers using total travel time is not a subject of frequent discussion. This study proposes a public transport accessibility index (EPTAI) which considers older peoples' travel time and the populations of the second-smallest statistical areas according to census data. EPTAI ide...

In developing countries such as Iran, due to the inadequate infrastructure for rail and air transportation facilities, intercity buses are the most common type of transportation for long distances. Because of the long hours of driving, bus driving is considered a challenging job. Moreover, given the high capacity of these vehicles, a small error fr...

The development of a public transport accessibility index for older travellers using total travel time is not a subject of frequent discussion. This study proposes a Public Transport Accessibility Index (EPTAI) which considers older peoples’ travel time and the populations of the second-smallest statistical areas according to census data. EPTAI ide...

Machine Learning (ML) algorithms are increasingly used as surrogate models to increase the efficiency of stochastic reliability analyses in geotechnical engineering. This paper presents a highly efficient ML aided reliability technique that is able to accurately predict the results of a Monte Carlo (MC) reliability study, and yet performs 500 times...

Random field Monte Carlo (MC) reliability analysis is a robust stochastic method to determine the probability of failure. This method, however, requires a large number of numerical simulations demanding high computational costs. This paper explores the efficiency of different machine learning (ML) algorithms used as surrogate models trained on a li...

Pavement management systems (PMSs) have a primary role in determining pavement condition monitoring and maintenance strategies. Moreover, many researchers have focused on pavement condition evaluation tools, starting with data collection, followed by processing, analyzing, and ultimately reaching practical conclusions regarding pavement condition....

Traffic congestion is becoming a critical problem in everyday life. The crucial need for a sustainable traffic forecasting method is becoming acute with time. This study develops an Auto Regressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) model to estimate the short-term traffic forecasting in uninterrupted traffic flow using stationary sensor data. The t...

12 Travel behaviour models are necessary to identify travel demand and planning transport 13 systems. Many studies identify various approaches to measure walking accessibility and travel 14 behaviour modelling. However, a limited model is developed to analyse the older peoples' 15 walking as a transport mode preference based on travel time, populat...

Road maintenance planning determines the type of maintenance and the timeframe for completion. Currently, road maintenance plans are mostly based on condition monitoring in fixed intervals. Mistakes in detection of pavement faults and wrong estimation of the maintenance time result in high maintenance costs. Therefore, there is a need to introduce...

Road freight transport and heavy vehicles play a significant role in transporting commodities and merchandise goods in Australia. According to the predictions, heavy vehicle traffic in Australia will increase by 50 per cent by 2030. The heavy vehicle traffic growth increases safety concerns since the probability of vehicle crashes increases by five...

In rail infrastructure, modelling the degradation prediction of rail track is an important step toward developing preventive maintenance strategies. Using quality data and datasets without the least error and noises can improve the accuracy and reliability of the models' predictions. In this study by the application of two outlier detection methods...

Hook turns as a practical traffic management approach are implemented at the intersections to accommodate the safe movement of right-turning vehicles and reduce the traffic delays experienced by the tram system. Hook turns are not limited to trams and passenger cars. Other modes of transport, including buses, bicycles, and motorcycles have also ben...

The elderly population is increasing rapidly. Understanding travel behaviour for this group of commuters (in terms of the trip purpose and travel time) is necessary for future transport planning. Many researchers are working on travel’s spatial and temporal analysis to provide operational decision making and transport network planning. This researc...

The high cost and time involved with traditional road pavement monitoring approaches as well as the high costs of pavement monitoring equipment necessitate the need for introducing a cheap, accurate and straightforward road pavement monitoring method. Pavement monitoring systems are considered as an important preventive step to maintain the quality...

The rising number of vehicles on roadways expedites the urge to increase efforts in implementing monitoring systems that look after road pavement conditions. This rising in number of vehicles on roadways also cause more damages and distresses on road pavement. Road pavement conditions should be accurately evaluated to identify the severity of pavem...

The increase in number of passengers and tramcars will wear down existing rail structures faster. This is forcing the rail infrastructure asset owners to incorporate asset management strategies to reduce total operating cost of maintenance whilst improving safety and performance. Analysing track geometry defects is critical to plan a proactive main...

Aim This paper is a research study investigating the magnitude and cost of waiting time as experienced by public transport users in Jordan. This study also used spatial analysis to measure services provided for public transport routes according to the average waiting time. Methods The data for waiting time of public transport users were collected...

Aim: This paper is a research study investigating the magnitude and cost of waiting time as experienced by public transport users in Jordan. This study also used spatial analysis to measure services provided for public transport routes according to the average waiting time. Methods: The data for waiting time of public transport users were collecte...

Track quality indices can be used as an indicator of rail condition concerning the risk of damage or failure. Previous studies have mainly focused on conventional rail track quality indices and light rail tracks have not been addressed properly. In order to fill this gap, this research aims to develop a track quality index which is usable for both...

Crashes involving heavy trucks and vulnerable road users are a major road safety concern because of the higher likelihood of fatal and serious injury. This research identified the socioeconomic characteristics affecting injury severity in collisions involving trucks and vulnerable road users. Specifically, the influences of the sociodemographic cha...

The quality of the pavement has a significant influence on the final price of goods and services, the safety of drivers, pedestrians and cyclists, and the driver's comfort. Pavement condition assessment is essential when developing road network maintenance programs. Thus, it is essential for government authorities or private entities to dynamically...

Tram and track interaction inevitably generates undesirable vibration, and the magnitude of this vibration may depend on various factors, including track quality, rail type, rail profile, tram type, ride quality, and speed. To investigate the impact of track quality on vibration, all other factors should be eliminated in experiments. To remove the...

The increase in traffic congestion in urban areas as a result of more private transport intensifies the importance of promoting public transport and rail transport in particular. The increasing demand for rail transport will lead to more pressure and stress on rail components and consequently higher rates of degradation. If degradation of railway c...

In the original publication the first sentence starting with “The model calibration process…” in Sect. 3.2.3 Model calibration and validation should be amended as

Along with increase in tram traffic, gradual increase in gauge deviation is inevitable. Excessive track gauge is considered as an effective parameter in aggravating the quality of ride as well as the traffic safety of tram services. To ensure a smooth ride, reduce the risk of the train derailment and lower cost of maintenance, preventive maintenanc...

Although vibration is considered as one of the important factors in passenger ride comfort, yet it has not been applied for predicting tram track degradation in tram network. Rail track degradation prediction models form an essential part of the rail infrastructure maintenance management systems. Vibration can be measured by acceleration signals. T...

This paper presents a review of sensors and inspection devices employed to inspect railway defects and track geometry irregularities. Inspection of rail defects is an important task in railway infrastructure management systems, and data derived from inspections can feed railway degradation prediction models. These models are utilised for predicting...

Household decisions to move from or stay at a current location may be based on a great number of variables. There has been substantial discussion among planners about the effect of the built environment in the choice of residential location. However, there is limited research on the role of non-motorised accessibility on residential location. House...

This paper presents a review of sensors and inspection devices employed to inspect railway defects and track geometry irregularities. Inspection of rail defects is an important task in railway infrastructure management systems, and data derived from inspections can feed railway degradation prediction models. These models are utilised for predicting...

The growth acceleration in the older population has been observed in many countries which creates a significant challenge to transportation. Public transport is an essential component of most people’s lives. This specific group of population growth will require special attention to accessibility and mobility issues in combination with the transport...

Gradual deviation in track gauge of tram systems resulted from tram traffic is unavoidable. Tram gauge deviation is considered as an important parameter in poor ride quality and the risk of train derailment. In order to decrease the potential problems associated with excessive gauge deviation, implementation of preventive maintenance activities is...

A rapid growth of the older population all around the world is being a significant number now a day. Public transport is an essential component of most people's lives. Good mobility and decent transportation alternatives are important in enabling the older population to participate in social interaction and daily activities. The most important conc...

In rail infrastructure maintenance management systems, Track Degradation Index (TDI) is considered as a representative of the quality of rail tracks. This index is usually developed based on the deviation rate or standard deviation of track geometry parameters. In this regard, the prediction of future TDI is an important task as it can be employed...

A growing number of recent studies have focused on improving the sustainability of transportation systems by routinely converting motorised travel to walking and conventional bicycling. The importance of physical activity and its impact on health have not only attracted the attention of practitioners, but also turned the attention of planners and p...

Traffic and transportation science consists of a broad range of topics. Traditional mathematical models and analysis tech-niques are not capable of translating many real-life problems in traffic and transportation engineering. In recent decades, optimization techniques and computational simulation and optimization models have provided solutions to...

Gradual deviation in track gauge of tram systems resulted from tram traffic is unavoidable. Tram gauge deviation is considered as an important parameter in poor ride quality and the risk of train derailment. In order to decrease the potential problems associated with excessive gauge deviation, implementation of preventive maintenance activities is...

Gradual deviation in track gauge of tram systems resulted from tram traffic is unavoidable. Tram gauge deviation is considered as an important parameter in poor ride quality and the risk of train derailment. In order to decrease the potential problems associated with excessive gauge deviation, implementation of preventive maintenance activities is...

Rail transport authorities around the world have been facing a significant challenge when predicting rail infrastructure maintenance work. With the restrictions on financial support, the rail transport authorities are in pursuit of improved modern methods, which can provide a precise prediction of rail maintenance timeframe. The expectation from su...

Tram is classified as a light rail mode of transportation. Tram tracks experience high acceleration and deceleration forces of locomotives and wagons within their service life and also share their route with other vehicles. This results in higher rates of degradation in tram tracks compared to the degradation rate in heavy rail tracks. In this rese...

Accessibility measures have been recognized as valuable input for decision support tools for land-use and transport planning. However, despite the relatively large number of available measures outlined in the literature, they are not widely used in planning practice, particularly in non-motorized transport modelling. Furthermore, the concept of ava...

In the past few decades, the railway infrastructure has been widely expanded in urban and rural areas, making it the most complex matrix of rail transport networks. Safe and comfortable travel on railways has always been a common goal for transportation engineers and researchers, and requires railways in excellent condition and well-organized maint...

Truck crashes are a major road safety concern due to the higher likelihood of a fatal or serious injury outcome. The primary objective of this research is to identify the neighbourhood socioeconomic characteristics affecting injury severity in truck collisions. Specifically, the influences of the socio-demographic characteristics of the neighbourho...

Nowadays, tram as an accessible and convenient mode of public transport is implemented and used in different cities. Due to high frequency of accelerations and decelerations along their routes and sharing the route with other vehicles, the rate of degradation of tram tracks (light rail) is different from the degradation rate of train tracks (heavy...

Socioeconomic factors are known to be contributing factors for vehicle-pedestrian crashes. Although several studies have examined the socioeconomic factors related to the location of the crashes, limited studies have considered the socioeconomic factors of the neighborhood where the road users live in vehicle-pedestrian crash modelling. This resear...

Objectives: Every year, about 1.24 million people are killed in traffic crashes in the world and more than 22% of these deaths are pedestrians. Therefore, pedestrian safety has become one of the significant traffic safety issues in the world. In order to develop effective and targeted safety programs, the location and time-specific influences on ve...

The objective of this research is to identify the factors differentiating between single heavy vehicle collisions at intersections and midblocks by using a binary logit model. Our results show that single vehicle crashes involving heavy vehicle at intersections are more likely to occur on main roads and highways, whereas crashes at midblocks are mo...

Crashes involving heavy vehicles are a major road safety concern because of the higher likelihood of fatal and serious injury outcomes. The primary objective of this research is to identify the factors contributing to injury severity in angle crashes involving heavy vehicles. The skewed logistic (Scobit) model is applied to data on two-vehicle angl...

Promoting walking trips is considered a key element of achieving more sustainable transportation. This paper presents a new index for measuring walkability in metropolitan areas. This index measures walkability levels for diversity and intensity of uses in spatial areas while considering the travel distance and time as travel impedance between orig...

Vehicle-pedestrian crashes are a major concern in many urban areas. Between 2004 and 2013, about 34 pedestrians have been killed every year in traffic crashes in Melbourne Metropolitan area in Australia and vehicle-pedestrian crashes account for 24% of all fatal crashes. Although many studies have analysed the variables affecting pedestrian crashes...

Different measures of cycling accessibility have been widely introduced in transportation planning. However, those measurements are mainly restricted by the availability of travel behaviour data. In addition, there has been limited comprehensive research on the importance of cycling accessibility of destinations based on the travel time or distance...

Objectives: Every year about 1.24 million people are killed in traffic crashes in the world and more than 22% of these deaths are pedestrians. Therefore, pedestrian safety has become one of the significant traffic safety issues in the world. In order to develop the most effective safety programs, targeting the most impactful countermeasures, locati...

Australia is extensively using large heavy vehicles to transport goods and material. In Melbourne, road freight has grown by about 5 per cent per annum between 1971 and 2003 and it is estimated to grow from 10.3 billion tonne-kilometres in 2003 to 16.9 billion tonne-kilometres in 2020. With the increase in road freight, there will be an increase in...

In the Melbourne metropolitan area in Australia, an average of 34 pedestrians were killed every year between 2004 and 2013 in traffic crashes, and vehicle-pedestrian crashes accounted for 24% of all fatal crashes. Mid-block crashes accounted for 46% of the total pedestrian crashes in the Melbourne metropolitan area and 49% of the pedestrian fatalit...

The increase in number of passengers and tramcars will wear down existing rail structures faster. This is forcing the rail infrastructure asset owners to incorporate asset management strategies to reduce total operating cost of maintenance whilst improving safety and performance. Analysing track geometry defects is critical to plan a proactive main...

Improving public transport accessibility can be considered an effective way of reducing the external costs and negative side effects of motorized commuting. Although there have been many studies conducted that have measured access levels to public transport stops/stations, there has been limited research on measuring accessibility that integrates p...

In recent years, traffic congestion has become a major problem in transport networks particularly in peak periods. The congestion problem has become worse in large cities, particularly in the CBDs over the last few decades and the problem intensifies every year. Traffic congestion results in longer travel times, larger delays, more fuel consumption...

Pedestrian crashes account for 11% of all reported traffic crashes in Melbourne metropolitan area between 2004 and 2013. There are very limited studies on pedestrian accidents at mid-blocks. Mid-block crashes account for about 46% of the total pedestrian crashes in Melbourne metropolitan area. Meanwhile, about 50% of all pedestrian fatalities occur...

Melbourne has the biggest operating tram network in the world with 250 kilometres of double track. There are 1,772 tram stops across the Melbourne tram network and 61% of these stops are kerbside. In addition, around 80% of Melbourne’s tram network shares road space with other vehicles and it cause to kerbside tram stops exposure risk of accidents...