Introduction to the RAMS Concept for Road Tunnel Operation - Technical Report

Road tunnel operators are increasingly aiming to adopt a sustainable approach to road tunnel operation whenever possible. They are thus starting to look into ways of optimising the lifecycle performance of systems and equipment, whilst at the same time guaranteeing the required level of safety. One possible means of achieving this is based on monitoring the Reliability, Availability, Maintainability and Safety (RAMS) of systems/equipment, based on pre-defined requirements (these aspects are clearly [...]

Prevention and Mitigation of Tunnel-Related Collisions - Technical Report

Because a road tunnel is an enclosed space, many tunnel safety measures are rightfully aimed at controlling the risks of fires and dangerous goods. However, practice generally shows that most injuries and fatalities in tunnels are actually related to traffic incidents that could also happen on the open road. This means that measures to assure traffic safety are also very important. Usually, several causes contribute to a specific collision occurring in a tunnel, or in its direct vicinity. Not [...]

Road Tunnels: Vehicle Emissions and Air Demand for Ventilation - Technical report

The design of a road tunnel ventilation system must consider fresh-air demand for maintaining in-tunnel air quality during normal and congested traffic operations and the control of smoke and hot gases in case of fire. The ventilation capacity to manage a fire incident frequently drives the ventilation sizing in highway and non-urban tunnels. Nevertheless, the fresh-air requirement for dilution during normal and congested operation, or special environmental constraints, can be dominant in tunnels [...]

Road tunnel operations: First steps towards a sustainable approach

In terms of sustainable development, the current situation in the field of infrastructure varies greatly from one country to another. Certain countries have laid down regulations; a few have set objectives to be achieved, while others have no regulations at all. So far, the World Road Association has not issued any recommendations for road tunnels which reflect the current'State of the Art' in various countries. This document has therefore been produced as an initial means of making up for this [...]

Design fire characteristics for road tunnels

Fire safety in tunnels depends on an amalgam of systems and procedures designed to achieve the best outcome in the event of an incident. The "Design Fire", defined in terms of its magnitude, growth rate and duration, provides a basis for sizing the required systems and anticipating the operational measures that need to be in place. In the case of new tunnels, it may influence the choice of tunnel configuration or the use of additional systems to mitigate consequences. A prescriptive approach [...]