Reliability analysis of truck escape ramp design

The truck escape ramp design presented by the Transportation Association of Canada is based on deterministic values of the design variables which include the required stopping distance, design speed, rolling resistance, and grade. Currently, a reliability analysis of the design of truck escape ramps does not exist. This report presents two methods used to analyze the reliability of truck escape ramp design; the first order second moment reliability method and the advanced first order second moment reliability method. These methods do not rely on deterministic values rather the mean and variance (moments) of each random variable’s probability distribution. Each reliability method was used to analyze truck escape ramps with one grade and two grades, for a total of four cases. The results of each case are provided and discussed along with an application to two existing truck escape ramps. The results show that the advanced first order second moment reliability method ensures more accurate results as well as a larger safety margin in comparison to the first order second moment method due to the nature of the methodology itself which considers design points.