Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue aims to explore the state-of-the-art research outcomes and state-of-the-practice case studies on sustainable transportation infrastructure management. The main objectives include: 1) to present the status and progress of the transportation community’s work to improve the sustainability of transportation infrastructure in system management; 2) to update the new concepts, models, methodologies, and performance criteria developed towards sustainable management of infrastructure facilities; and 3) to provide implications and suggestions for policy implementation and future research.

Because of material aging, frequent use, environmental change, and mismanagement, many existing transportation infrastructure facilities are deteriorating and becoming more vulnerable to catastrophic failure, particularly in extreme events such as hurricanes, earthquakes, and wildfires. On the other hand, the renewal and expansion of infrastructure continue to consume ever-dwindling natural resources and release emissions that deteriorate the environment. There are growing awareness and demand for a sustainable transportation infrastructure system in the sense that it not only provides the desired service to the public in a cost-effective way, but also relies less on nonrenewable resources and imposes less negative environmental impact. To achieve such a goal, the transportation infrastructure must be managed in an intelligent manner. In recent years, there have been active research and practice efforts towards sustainable transportation infrastructure management. Stakeholders in the transportation community are also supportive of sustainable management technologies, practices, and policies. The latest technical information in this aspect, therefore, has great value to both researchers and practitioners.

This Special Issue welcomes the latest research in management technologies and applications that provide promising and practical solutions to various challenges faced by the engineering communities in a broad context of sustainable transportation infrastructure. Research along this line includes, but is not limited to, sampling and inspection of transportation infrastructure facilities with new technologies (e.g., smart sensors, automated survey vehicles or devices); facility performance modeling that incorporates sustainability; algorithms that support the decision-making process for maintenance, rehabilitation, renewal, and expansion of transportation infrastructure towards long-term sustainability; case studies; or engineering applications that present promising results. In particular, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, people’s travel patterns have changed dramatically around the world, significantly impacting the performance of transportation infrastructure. Such impacts need to be understood and potentially considered in the management practice of transportation infrastructure systems in the near future.

Dr. Qing Lu
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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• transportation infrastructure
• management
• sustainability
• performance modeling
• maintenance and rehabilitation
• optimization
• decision-making
• catastrophic failure