2.5.5 PE Yukon Department of Transportation and Public Works Vegetation Control

Vegetation Control / Yukon Department of Highways and Public Works

The Yukon Department of Transportation and Public Works (TPW) is committed to taking a consistent, strategic approach to asset planning and management; to deliver services matching their customers’ expectations, while maximizing value for money. Vegetation management is a key part of TPW’s roadside safety program. It improves highway safety and helps preserve their infrastructure by:

• Improving visibility and vehicle sight lines.
• Reducing wildlife collisions.
• Establishing a clear zone.
• Facilitating roadside drainage.
• Preserving roadside surfaces.
• Controlling invasive weeds.
• Enhancing the overall driving experience.

The TPW roadside vegetation management program was established in the early 2000’s to address the challenges of maintaining right-of-way growth throughout Yukon. Over the past few years, the program was reassessed, leading to several improvements in the inspections and decision-making processes. This included establishing a life cycle model in the agency's dTIMS management system, to project the future condition of roadside vegetation, generate possible treatment strategies (e.g., mowing, brushing) for each section of road, and identify an optimal solution by assessing the life cycle costs and benefits from each treatment strategy for each road section. This included steps to define and compile the model inputs, including roadway inventory, vegetation condition ratings, deterioration curves, treatment options, treatment decision logic and financial parameters. The dTIMS roadside vegetation life cycle model was used to develop an optimized long-term investment plan that assessed the impacts of alternative budget scenarios and/or constraints. It also provided an example of how the software could be used by TPW staff to later model decision making for other asset types.