Trends and gaps in the literature of road network repair and restoration in the context of disaster response operations

Abstract

Natural and man-made disasters can disrupt road networks. The post-disaster period is usually divided into short and long-term response phases. In the short-term phase, blocked roads can jeopardize emergency operations such as search-and-rescue, evacuation of victims, and the distribution of emergency supplies. The detritus may pose an environmental challenge in the long-term, as the rubble must be properly collected, disposed of, and recycled. Optimization models designed to schedule repair and restoration activities and determine the repair crews' routes are helpful to give insights to decision-makers on how to improve emergency response plans. This article presents a literature review on short and long-term network models designed for roads repair and restoration. This review identifies the trends in publications, solution approaches, frequency of locations and type of disaster in the case studies, and the size of the networks. In addition, a qualitative analysis of the models’ characteristics, such as the type of network, uncertainties, and interdependencies, is presented. A discussion is provided to indicate future research directions. Among these, future research should focus on the combination of roads repair and restoration with other emergency activities such as relief distribution.