Using fuzzy inference systems to optimize highway alignments

The general objective of the research project is to explore innovations in integrating infrastructure and land use planning for transportation corridors. In contexts with environmental impact, the choice of transportation routes must address the sensitivity of current and preexisting conditions. Multi-criteria analyses are used to solve problems of this nature, but they do not define an objective approach on a quantitative basis taking into account some important, but often intrinsically unmeasurable parameters. Fuzzy logic becomes a more effective model as systems become more complex. During the preliminary design phase, fuzzy inference systems offer a contribution to decision-making which is much more complete than a benefits/and costs analysis. In this study, alternative alignment options are considered, combining engineering, social, environmental, and economic factors in the decision-making. The research formalizes a general method useful for analyzing different case studies. The method can be used to justify highway alignment choices in environmental impact study analysis.