Planned Versus Unplanned : Travel Impacts and Adjustment Strategies of the Collapse and the Reopening of I-35w Bridge

Major network disruptions have significant impacts on local travelers. A good understanding of behavioral reactions to such incidents is crucial for traffic management and planning. Existing research on such topics is limited. This study investigates travelers' reaction to both the collapse and reopening of the I-35W Bridge crossing the Mississippi River at the Twin Cities, Minnesota. A web-based survey conducted at residences in several communities across the metropolitan area supplements the hand-out/mail-back paper-based survey distributed to workers in areas around the bridge collapse (downtown Minneapolis and the University of Minnesota). Findings from the survey highlight differences in travel impacts and behavioral reactions after the bridge collapse and the bridge reopening