Characterizing the Nature of a Multi-Regional Trucking Network Using the Network Robustness Index: An Application to Ontario, Canada

Abstract Freight activity and economic productivity rely heavily on a robust road transportation network. Robustness refers to a network’s ability to withstand disruptions and is represented here by the change in network-wide travel time using the Network Robustness Index (NRI). Network disruptions can potentially severely degrade the network’s functionality and diminish regional trade. Such effects can be far-reaching into a transportation network. This paper uses the NRI to examine the characteristics of a large-scale transportation network in the province of Ontario, Canada. Truck and passenger flows are modelled on a network of 35,254 links and 14,444 nodes to ascertain the network-wide impact of the closure of each individual network link. The results show that heavily travelled highways and connectors to northern regions of the province are likely to exhibit more severe network degradation if disturbed. The results are valuable for informing policymakers of the network segments that pose the most severe threats, should they become disabled, and of the severity of the most likely events to occur. The value in this research, then, is to serve as a tool for providing a characterization of the regional road network and the trade activities it serves to inform measures to mitigate disruption events.