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Rockfall in the Port Hills of Christchurch: Seismic and non‐seismic fatality risk on roads
Author(s) -
Unterrader Stefan,
Almond Peter,
Fuchs Sven
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
new zealand geographer
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.335
H-Index - 25
eISSN - 1745-7939
pISSN - 0028-8144
DOI - 10.1111/nzg.12170
Subject(s) - rockfall , seismic risk , geography , risk management , geology , forensic engineering , seismology , engineering , business , landslide , finance
Numerous rockfalls released during the 2010–2011 Canterbury earthquake sequence affected vital road sections for local commuters. We quantified rockfall fatality risk on two main routes by adapting a risk approach for roads originally developed for snow avalanche risk. We present results of the collective and individual fatality risks for traffic flow and waiting traffic. Waiting traffic scenarios particularly address the critical spatial‐temporal dynamics of risk, which should be acknowledged in operational risk management. Comparing our results with other risks commonly experienced in New Zealand indicates that local rockfall risk is close to tolerability thresholds and likely exceeds acceptable risk.