Next Generation Urban Encroachment Model

A key concern for military installations is the increasing urban growth in their vicinity and its effect on mission requirements and regional sustainability goals. Mission requirements can be compromised by encroaching land uses as neighboring communities grow and prosper as the economies in the surrounding communities grow, the benefits of retaining military lands can be obscured. This research will look at how to best simulate future growth of transportation networks based on land use and traffic demands. Using LEAM, a spatial dynamic modeling tool used to simulate future land use change and associated impacts, it is possible to generate the potential future land use demand. This project will explore the feasibility of developing a new urban encroachment model that couples LEAM with a transportation network growth model to identify potential threats of urban encroachment around installations. Research included in this proposal will include review of current transportation network growth models and development of a prototype model that will interact with the LEAM land use model. This new urban encroachment model would provide a means of preemptively identifying future encroachment that would negatively impact the Army's training and testing missions.