R&D highlights edition 2019

Delta infrastructure 49 R&D Highlights 2019 T he main objective of this study was to help Albanian stakeholders to prioritise future climate- and seismic- resilient investments in road assets. The objective was achieved by making an assessment of the vulnerability of the national road network in Albania to flooding, landslide and seismic events, proposing mitigation measures and developing a strategy to deal with climate uncertainties. Roads are critically important for society. Roads that are unavailable or unreliable have a significant impact on economic growth. At the same time, transport plays a crucial role in building climate-resilient communities. Albania ranks as the most threatened country in Europe from multiple hazards. It is ranked number 39 in the list of countries with the highest World Risk Index based on exposure to natural hazards, vulnerability, and coping and adaptation capacities. The country is prone to hydro-meteorological hazards (such as floods, drought and heavy snowfalls) and geological hazards (earthquakes and landslides, for example). Landslides are one of the most critical hazards. Deltares was therefore asked to help the World Bank and Albanian stakeholders with an assessment of, among other things, landslide hazards and the risks affecting the country’s roads. The analysis looked at nearly 1500 kilometres of roads and the associated assets that make up the Albanian primary road network. By combining the publicly available ELSUS landslide susceptibility map for the European continent with a local land­ slide database and local experience, the teamwas able to estimate how often landslides occur in selected areas with a comparable susceptibility. Moreover, we determined the repair costs associated with a landslide. These results were then combined with a traffic analysis to estimate the economic damage due to roads not being available. The outcome of this study was set out on a map that shows, for each kilometre of the road network, the Annual Expected Damage (AED) (in Euro/km) caused by landslide events. The project also included the analysis of fluvial flooding and seis- mic events, followed by the production of similar maps. Further- more, suggestions were provided for an action plan, including the cost-benefit ratios for possible solutions. The results have been summarised in three reports and they will be used by the Alba- nian Road Authority to prioritise current and future resilient in- vestments in road assets. Contact: Mario Martinelli, Mario.Martinelli@deltares.nl , t +31 (0)88 335 7210 Mike Woning, Mike.Woning@deltares.nl , t +31 (0)88 335 7357 LANDSLIDE RISK ASSESSMENT FOR THE ROAD NETWORK IN ALBANIA Climate change puts many investments in the transport infrastructure in Albania at risk. Extreme weather events such as floods and landslides are expected to increase in frequency and intensity. Sea level rise results in risk for coastal transport infrastructure. Expected Annual Repair Costs for landslide hazard