A KBES to analyze the environmental impact of proposed highway design alternatives

This study addresses the application of a knowledge based expert system as a tool for selecting the best alternative for a proposed highway alignment from multiple alternatives based on environmental features. The automated environmental evaluation aid method uses Expert Systems to complete the approach of automation, performing the integration functions.

Noise Prediction and Air Quality analyses for the attributes noise and air are performed in detail, and other environmental attributes are generalized.

The VP-Expert shell, version 3.10, was the tool used to build the expert system prototype. The prototype was tested with real design cases and it was verified that the system is able to develop an acceptable selection among several alignment alternatives for a new expressway section.

The main feature of the evaluation is the utilization of the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) with the following environmental attributes: noise pollution, air pollution, water (surface water and wetlands) affected, endangered species habitat disruption, wildlife habitat disruption, and displacement of houses by the future ROW (right of way) of the new facility. AHP, a multicriterion's decision making process created by Thomas Saaty in 1972, is used as a decision making methodology to select the best alternative.