Projects

Principal Investigator:

Falak Fatima Zaidi

Funding Source:

Statewide Transportation Research Program

Program Area(s):

Environment, Resilient Transportation

This capstone project was completed in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree Master of Urban & Regional Planning at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs.

Principal Investigator:

Mikhail Chester

Funding Source:

Statewide Transportation Research Program

Program Area(s):

Resilient Transportation

Wildfires and post-fire debris flows have had severe impacts on California’s transportation system recently, and climate forecasts show that these hazards are likely to become more of a concern in the future. Yet our understanding of the vulnerability of transportation systems to wildfires is in its nascent stages, with focus largely on evacuation logistics and characterizing where risks of fire are increasing and which infrastructure are co-located. Wildfire risk is much more complex as post-fire precipitation events create conditions where roadway stormwater management is failed often leaving remote communities disconnected. There is an opportunity to improve our understanding of the vulnerability of transportation systems and associated adaptation strategies to ensure that services continue to be delivered in the face of growing hazards. This problem is not specific to California as wildfires across the Southwest are becoming more problematic.