Keeping winter roads open: Integrating snow avalanche risk assessment data from uncrewed aerial vehicles into roadway agencies' decision support systems

Uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) are increasingly used to monitor snow conditions. Routine operational use by roadway owning organisations for avalanche risk assessments require an understanding of UAV and sensor technology as well as of relevant organisational aspects. To investigate these areas, the Norwegian public-sector innovation project "Geohazard Survey from Air" (GEOSFAIR) is exploring remote decision support using UAVs. The effort has developed methodologies for effectively collecting and integrating UAV data into the decision support system for roadside avalanche risk assessments, helping keep critical roadways open and safe.