THE MANAGEMENT OF VIAL NETWORKS

WWithin this area, all topics pertaining to the operation of a network of roads (such as the tools needed to optimize available resources, to mention but on) shall be dealt with. All aspects concerned with the legislation (as in the case of monitoring, the assessing and assigning of traffic) will be considered. Besides other topics to be covered are: the various methodologies needed to guarantee genuine economic resources, various alternatives to vial financing, the inter relation between transportation and other means, the need for more regional integration vial works, etc. The need to achieve a high level of road accessibility in the tertiary networks of developing countries so as to improve the link between production centers, as well as the need to maintain some continuity of operations among rural networks and the secondary and primary ones, are important enough to deserve being dealt with in depth.
This commission will, therefore, cover all topics pertaining to rural roads, from the definition of their function to the need to set up a sustained financing system for them.

Without any restrictive purpose being served, the themes to be dealt with in this area are:

ROAD TRANSPORTATION

The topics included in this Area are those pertaining to road transportation and are meant to achieve its optimum level, both in terms of passengers and freight movement. Topics to be dealt with shall therefore cover the regulation of transport, transportation plans and their economy, the coordination among various means of transport and the operation and equipment needed for freight transportation.

Topics on the Commission's agenda will range from:

ROADS PROJECT

All aspects related to safety and efficiency of road traffic must be reckoned with from the very moment a project is undertaken. In this Area, all issues concerned with the geometric design of roads, design standards, computer-assisted design techniques, the technologies required in their construction and subsequent operation aimed at lowering costs and improving efficiency in their performance, will be duly covered. Likewise, aspects pertaining to the design, construction and conservation of bridges and tunnels will be analyzed alongside the review of techniques in the use of materials and evaluation methods and the management of works.
The necessary expansion of infrastructure results, in most cases, in negative impacts on the environment, which must be reviewed in terms of the project and operation. This is an act inherent to vial infrastructure which must be reckoned with, in all of its environmental consequences.

Without any restrictive purpose being served, these are the topics in this Area:

ROAD SAFETY

The high rates of traffic accidents observed lately in various countries of the region and in our country, in particular, as well as all the factors contributing to them, deserves dealing with in depth and within the framework of roads safety. That's why it has been deemed necessary to analyze this topic thoroughly, encompassing its legislative aspects pertaining to safety, policies, education and methodologies for the assessment of data and analytic methods.

Some of the topics covered will be:

PAVEMENTS

This commission will deal with all aspects pertaining to the design, construction, conservation and preservation of pavements (in all its forms) as well as with various aspects concerned with basic vial works. Likewise, it will deal with topics referring to the assessment of pavements structural and superficial features as well as with the equipment needed for so doing.

These are some of the topics to be dealt with:

URBAN VIAL FEATURES

Due to the high level of vehicle use, medium and large human concentrations face a host of traffic, mobility and transportation problems these days, which calls for the search for new and more efficient traffic and transportation ordering and rationalization systems. The improvement of vehicle circulation and streets design, coupled with the prioritization of their use, will hopefully prevent the current situation from worsening. In this area, all aspects related to urban vial features, the inter relation between urban and inter urban traffic will be discussed.

These are some of the topics for this Commission:

INTELLIGENT TRANSPORT AND TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT

The amazing development of Intelligent Transport Systems all over the World has proved its advantages not only in terms of economics but also in terms of increased safety on the roads and more available information for road users, which results in turn in lower commuting time and the eradication of time-consuming itineraries. In this area we will be analyzing and debating the latest breakthroughs in the field as well as promoting their incorporation. The high infrastructure and operation requirements which are essential to reach make the above necessary to count with a sustained technological growth are unfortunately a typically underestimated aspect in developing countries. Technological development coupled with scientific research are two key aspects for such countries to finally integrate themselves into this new, more globalized and far more competitive world. In this Area, all aspects pertaining to the access to new technologies, the encouragement of applied research and the transfer of technology both among sectors and among nations will be reviewed.

Topic to be covered will range from: