Measuring the accessibility of critical facilities in the presence of hurricane-related roadway closures and an approach for predicting future roadway disruptions

Roadway closures magnify the adverse effects of disasters on people since any type of such disruption increases the emergency response travel time (ERTT), which is of central importance for the safety and survival of the affected people. Especially in the State of Florida, high winds due to hurricanes, such as the Hurricane Hermine, lead to notable roadway disruptions and closures that compel special attention. As such, in this paper, the accessibility of emergency response facilities, such as police stations, fire stations and hospitals in the City of Tallahassee, the capital of Florida, was extensively studied using real-life data on roadway closures during Hurricane Hermine. A new metric, namely Accessibility Decrease Index, was proposed, which measures the change in ERTT before and in the aftermath of a hurricane such as Hermine. Results clearly show those regions with reduced emergency response facility accessibility and roadways under a disruption risk in the 1-week window after Hermine hit Tallahassee. City officials can pinpoint these critical locations for future improvements and identify those critical roadways, which are under a risk of disruption due to the impact of the hurricane. This information can be utilized to improve emergency response plans by improving the roadway infrastructure and providing alternative routes to public.