A Novel Data-Envelopment Analysis Interval-Valued Fuzzy-Rough-Number Multi-Criteria Decision-Making (DEA-IFRN MCDM) Model for Determining the Efficiency of Road Sections Based on Headway Analysis

Abstract

The capacity of transport infrastructure is one of the very important tasks in transport engineering, which depends mostly on the geometric characteristics of road and headway analysis. In this paper, we have considered 14 road sections and determined their efficiency based on headway analysis. We have developed a novel interval fuzzy-rough-number decision-making model consisting of DEA (data envelopment analysis), IFRN SWARA (interval-valued fuzzy-rough-number stepwise weight-assessment-ratio analysis), and IFRN WASPAS (interval-valued fuzzy-rough-number weighted-aggregate sum–product assessment) methods. The main contribution of this study is a new extension of WASPAS method with interval fuzzy rough numbers. Firstly, the DEA model was applied to determine the efficiency of 14 road sections according to seven input–output parameters. Seven out of the fourteen alternatives showed full efficiency and were implemented further in the model. After that, the IFRN SWARA method was used for the calculation of the final weights, while IFRN WASPAS was applied for ranking seven of the road sections. The results show that two sections are very similar and have almost equal efficiency, while the other results are very stable. According to the results obtained, the best-ranked is a measuring segment of the Ivanjska–Šargovac section, with a road gradient = −5.5%, which has low deviating values of headways according to the measurement classes from PC-PC to AT-PC, which shows balanced and continuous traffic flow. Finally, verification tests such as changing the criteria weights, comparative analysis, changing the λ parameter, and reverse rank analysis have been performed.