Weighting Variables for Transportation Assets Condition Indices Using Subjective Data Framework

This study proposes a novel framework for determining variables’ weights in transportation assets condition indices calculations using statistical and machine learning techniques. The methodology leverages subjective ratings alongside objective measurements to derive data-driven weights. The motivat...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Abdallah B. Al-Hamdan, Yazan Ibrahim Alatoom, Inya Nlenanya, Omar Smadi
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2024-10-01
Series:CivilEng
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2673-4109/5/4/48
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1846105241538265088
author Abdallah B. Al-Hamdan
Yazan Ibrahim Alatoom
Inya Nlenanya
Omar Smadi
author_facet Abdallah B. Al-Hamdan
Yazan Ibrahim Alatoom
Inya Nlenanya
Omar Smadi
author_sort Abdallah B. Al-Hamdan
collection DOAJ
description This study proposes a novel framework for determining variables’ weights in transportation assets condition indices calculations using statistical and machine learning techniques. The methodology leverages subjective ratings alongside objective measurements to derive data-driven weights. The motivation for this study lies in addressing the limitations of existing expert-based weighting methods for condition indices, which often lack transparency and consistency; this research aims to provide a data-driven framework that enhances accuracy and reliability in infrastructure asset management. A case study was performed as a proof of concept of the proposed framework by applying the framework to obtain data-driven weights for pavement condition index (PCI) calculations using data for the city of West Des Moines, Iowa. Random forest models performed effectively in modeling the relationship between the overall condition index (OCI) and the objective measures and provided feature importance scores that were converted into weights. The data-driven weights showed strong correlation with existing expert-based weights, validating their accuracy while capturing contextual variations between pavement types. The results indicate that the proposed framework achieved high model accuracy, demonstrated by R-squared values of 0.83 and 0.91 for rigid and composite pavements, respectively. Additionally, the data-driven weights showed strong correlations (R-squared values of 0.85 and 0.98) with existing expert-based weights, validating their effectiveness. This advanceIRIment offers transportation agencies an enhanced tool for prioritizing maintenance and resource allocation, ultimately leading to improved infrastructure longevity. Additionally, this approach shows promise for application across various transportation assets based on the yielded results.
format Article
id doaj-art-dfcbab486ecc4acfb22aa9cbc20ba3f8
institution Kabale University
issn 2673-4109
language English
publishDate 2024-10-01
publisher MDPI AG
record_format Article
series CivilEng
spelling doaj-art-dfcbab486ecc4acfb22aa9cbc20ba3f82024-12-27T14:18:24ZengMDPI AGCivilEng2673-41092024-10-015494997010.3390/civileng5040048Weighting Variables for Transportation Assets Condition Indices Using Subjective Data FrameworkAbdallah B. Al-Hamdan0Yazan Ibrahim Alatoom1Inya Nlenanya2Omar Smadi3Department of Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011, USADepartment of Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011, USADepartment of Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011, USADepartment of Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011, USAThis study proposes a novel framework for determining variables’ weights in transportation assets condition indices calculations using statistical and machine learning techniques. The methodology leverages subjective ratings alongside objective measurements to derive data-driven weights. The motivation for this study lies in addressing the limitations of existing expert-based weighting methods for condition indices, which often lack transparency and consistency; this research aims to provide a data-driven framework that enhances accuracy and reliability in infrastructure asset management. A case study was performed as a proof of concept of the proposed framework by applying the framework to obtain data-driven weights for pavement condition index (PCI) calculations using data for the city of West Des Moines, Iowa. Random forest models performed effectively in modeling the relationship between the overall condition index (OCI) and the objective measures and provided feature importance scores that were converted into weights. The data-driven weights showed strong correlation with existing expert-based weights, validating their accuracy while capturing contextual variations between pavement types. The results indicate that the proposed framework achieved high model accuracy, demonstrated by R-squared values of 0.83 and 0.91 for rigid and composite pavements, respectively. Additionally, the data-driven weights showed strong correlations (R-squared values of 0.85 and 0.98) with existing expert-based weights, validating their effectiveness. This advanceIRIment offers transportation agencies an enhanced tool for prioritizing maintenance and resource allocation, ultimately leading to improved infrastructure longevity. Additionally, this approach shows promise for application across various transportation assets based on the yielded results.https://www.mdpi.com/2673-4109/5/4/48transportation assetssubjective ratingmachine learningfeature importanceasset managementpavement performance
spellingShingle Abdallah B. Al-Hamdan
Yazan Ibrahim Alatoom
Inya Nlenanya
Omar Smadi
Weighting Variables for Transportation Assets Condition Indices Using Subjective Data Framework
CivilEng
transportation assets
subjective rating
machine learning
feature importance
asset management
pavement performance
title Weighting Variables for Transportation Assets Condition Indices Using Subjective Data Framework
title_full Weighting Variables for Transportation Assets Condition Indices Using Subjective Data Framework
title_fullStr Weighting Variables for Transportation Assets Condition Indices Using Subjective Data Framework
title_full_unstemmed Weighting Variables for Transportation Assets Condition Indices Using Subjective Data Framework
title_short Weighting Variables for Transportation Assets Condition Indices Using Subjective Data Framework
title_sort weighting variables for transportation assets condition indices using subjective data framework
topic transportation assets
subjective rating
machine learning
feature importance
asset management
pavement performance
url https://www.mdpi.com/2673-4109/5/4/48
work_keys_str_mv AT abdallahbalhamdan weightingvariablesfortransportationassetsconditionindicesusingsubjectivedataframework
AT yazanibrahimalatoom weightingvariablesfortransportationassetsconditionindicesusingsubjectivedataframework
AT inyanlenanya weightingvariablesfortransportationassetsconditionindicesusingsubjectivedataframework
AT omarsmadi weightingvariablesfortransportationassetsconditionindicesusingsubjectivedataframework