This thesis investigates the impact of precipitation on the UK motorway network, with the aim of determining how speed, flow and accidents are affected. Climate change impact assessments require detailed information regarding the impact of weather in the current (baseline) climate and so this thesis seeks to address gaps in knowledge of current precipitation impacts to better inform future climate impact assessments. This thesis demonstrates that whilst precipitation does impact on traffic speeds, there is no universal significant single factor relationship. Indeed, a key threshold is identified at 0 mm hr-1 – the fastest speeds occur when there is no precipitation and speeds immediately decrease at the onset of precipitation. More detailed findings indicate the impact can be detected in both speed and maximum flow across much of the network as well as a downward reduction in the overall speed – flow relationship. In addition to speed flow, the impact of precipitation on road traffic accidents was also investigated. Fifteen percent of accidents in the UK occur in wet weather. Precipitation related accidents are shown to have a prolonged impact on the road network and can continue to cause a decrease in traffic speed and flow for up to three hours afterwards. With increased instances of heavy precipitation predicted as a result of climate change, these findings highlight the subsequent impact on journey speeds, travel times, traffic flows and the associated economic costs.

The author of this thesis deals with the issues of real time traffic management in junction areas and bottleneck sections on mainline railways in the event of service disturbances. A systematic methodology is proposed for modelling and solving real time train rescheduling problems in junction areas and bottleneck sections, including train re-sequencing and train re-timing. A formal mathematical model, the Junction Rescheduling Model (JRM) is proposed, based on a Mixed Integer Programming (MIP) to minimise a Weighted Average Delay (WAD). An innovative algorithm based on Differential Evolution algorithm, named DE_JRM is proposed for solving real time train rescheduling problems formulated with JRM. The performance of the algorithm DE_JRM has been evaluated with a stochastic method based on Monte-Carlo simulation methodology. The evaluation results show a good performance for both flyover and flat junctions compared with First Come First Served (FCFS) and a conventional ARS strategy. The author also extends the proposed methodology, including JRM and the algorithm DE_JRM, to model and solve real time train rescheduling problems for bottleneck sections of railway networks. Finally, an integrated system architecture for the traffic management and train control is introduced for system implementation of the proposed methodology of train rescheduling in junction areas and bottleneck sections on mainline railways.

Fundamental differences exist in soil types formed under temperate and tropical climatic conditions. Consequently, their use for road pavement design will require different approaches and standards. The absence of a systematic approach in addressing tropical pavement design requirements and the use of temperate design standards for tropical countries has led to early failure of road pavements in Ghana and other tropical countries. However, few studies have been carried out on developing standards based on field studies to determine key design parameters to address challenges of tropical pavement design. The aim of this research is to evolve a rational approach using mechanistic-empirical principles to design pavements for tropical laterite soils. The main objectives were therefore to determine the key pavement design parameters for Ghana through empirical studies as well as carry out technical and economic analysis to establish optimum designs for the various climatic zones of Ghana.

Soil stabilisation is one of the most common techniques used to mitigate the undesirable properties of soft soils such as low compressive strength and high compressibility. Cement is the most commonly used binder for soil improvement applications in the UK and worldwide due to its high strength performance. However, its manufacture is energy intensive and expensive, contributing approximately 7% of global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. Therefore, the search for alternative raw materials, such as waste and by-products, is becoming critical in order to develop cost effective and more environmentally friendly binders to replace cement and reduce its negative environmental impact. Blended waste material fly ashes have been identified as promising alternatives to traditional binders (cement CEM-I) in different construction industries including ground improvement. The reuse of waste material fly ashes such as waste paper sludge ash (WPSA), palm oil fuel ash (POFA) and rice husk ash (RHA) has many advantages, specifically in terms of eliminating the cost of their transportation and eventual landfill, their continuous supply and the negligible, or zero, cost of production. This research project details the process of the development of a new cementitious binder, produced by blending cement-free WPSA, POFA and RHA under physico-chemical activation using flue gas desulphurisation (FGD) gypsum, for use in soft soil stabilisation. The effects of different binders produced from unary (WPSA), binary (WPSA and POFA) and ternary (WPSA, POFA and RHA) blended mixtures, along with ground and FGD gypsum activated ternary mixtures, on the geotechnical properties of soft soils, were extensively investigated. Comparisons of Atterberg limits, strength (unconfined compressive strength (UCS)), compressibility characteristics and durability (wetting-drying cycles effect) of untreated soil and soil stabilised with the optimum unary, binary, ternary and activated ternary mixtures and a reference cement treated soil, have been carried out. An investigation of the microstructural and mineralogical composition of the newly developed binder, in comparison to those of the reference cement, was also carried out using X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) imaging and energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectroscopy analysis. The results indicate that the soil stabilised with the ternary mixture activated by FGD gypsum (T+FGD), had the greatest compressive strength, compressibility and durability improvement; the performance of the newly developed cementitious binder was comparable to that of the reference cement. This binder comprises 8% WPSA + 2% POFA + 2% RHA activated with 5% of FGD, by the total mass of binder. The addition of FGD gypsum has been observed to enhance the pozzolanic reaction, leading to improved geotechnical properties; mainly UCS which increased over time of curing and exceeded that for the soil treated with reference cement, after 180 days. The results obtained from XRD analysis, SEM testing and EDX analysis revealed the formation of hydrated cementitious products represented by calcium silicate hydrates (C-S-H), Portlandite (CH) and ettringite. The formation of these hydrates reveals the developments gained in the geotechnical properties of the treated soil. A solid, coherent and compacted soil structure was achieved after using T+FGD, as confirmed by the formation of C-S-H, CH and ettringite. Therefore, a new, Cost effect, eco-friendly and sustainable cementitious binder has been successfully developed and can be used with confidence for soft soil stabilisation, as a 100% replacement of conventional cement.

Society has gripped the concept of road transport and has utilised it for social, personal and economic gain. Amidst the apparent benefits, a number of concerns exist around the dangers, congestion, and monetary loss associated with vehicular transport. To counteract this, the introduction of driverless vehicles is being discussed by manufacturers and the Government. Whilst there are a number of apparent benefits, there is an overwhelming need to consider public perception and acceptance of autonomous vehicles. This research study therefore investigates the aforementioned, analysing and presenting the major issues and concerns related to their uptake. An interview and focus group based approach was adopted for this research, using the Charmaz (2006) constructivist grounded theory methodology. Interviews were conducted with a range of stakeholders and the results of the study detailed that the environment the vehicle and user operate in presents associated issues influencing perceptions, and that technology acceptance is strongly influenced by levels of Motivation in Intention, Acceptance/Usage and Control. Furthermore, acceptance is perceived differently by various stakeholder groups, each with their individual concerns and speculations. The discussion of the study considers the gathered perception to ascertain how best to introduce autonomous vehicles to the public market, highlighting and satisfying the current implications of doing so. This study highlights the need for further research in this discipline, based on the identification of many knowledge gaps. Further work is discussed and recommended in order to combat the limitations and opportunities identified within this thesis.

In the northern South Island, the area northern Te Wai Pounamu (NTWP) is defined appropriate to a regional investigation of pre-European culture change. It is argued that the Maori sequence of this region is relevant to a range of interpretative problems in New Zealand�s archaeological past. Preparatory to this investigation, the international and New Zealand literature on culture change is reviewed. Two primary investigative foci of change are identified in NTWP; subsistence economy and stone tool manufacturing technology. A chronological scheme of Early, Middle and Late Periods based on firmly dated ecological events and/or independent radiocarbon ages is defined so as to order the archaeological data without recourse to unproven scenarios of cultural change and association. The Early Period subsistence economy is assessed in some detail. An Early Period settlement focus is documented along the eastern Tasman Bay coast in proximity to meta-argillite sources. Early Period midden remains suggest that several genera of seal and moa were exploited, and that people were fishing in eastern Tasman Bay during the warmer months of the year. From the Early Period fishhook assemblages of Tasman Bay, manufacturing change is inferred related to the increasing scarcity of moa bone over time. It is argued that lower Early Period settlement of the larger northern South Island was focused on the north-eastern coast to Rangitoto (D�Urville Island), while NTWP was characterized by smaller stone working communities operating in summer. In contrast, moa-free middens in Awaroa Inlet and Bark Bay of the western Tasman Bay granite coast present a physical dominance of Paphies australis, and finfish species suggesting, along with the dearth of Austrovenus stutchburyi, occupation outside of the warmer summer months. These middens also present an absence of seal and a paucity of bird bone, while sharing a robust 15th-16th centuries AD radiocarbon chronology. With the dearth of all bird species from granite coast middens in general, and evidence that the less preferred kokako (Callaeas c. cinerea) was caught during the occupation of Awaroa Inlet N26/214, it is suggested that cultural regulations beyond immediate subsistence needs were also operating at this time. From southern Tasman Bay, the archaeological investigation of the important Appleby site N27/118 suggests that the people associated with the extensive horticultural soils of Waimea West otherwise consumed finfish and estuarine shellfish in (non-summer) season, kiore (Rattus exulans), dog or kuri (Canis familiaris), and several small evidence of Maori tradition, archaeological charcoal, and the approximately 16th century radiocarbon chronology for N27/118 and the associated Appleby gravel borrow pit N27/122 places the advent of extensive Waimea horticulture within the post-moa, lower Middle Period Maori economy. The Haulashore Island archaeological assemblage of south-eastern Tasman Bay with a similar material culture to Appleby is also bereft of seal and any diagnostic moa bone. This Middle Period evidence is considered in a larger comparative perspective, where the absence of seal from 15th-16th centuries Tasman Bay middens is interpreted as a factor of human predation. A secure radiocarbon chronology suggests the convergence of this loss with the diminishment and loss of selected avifauna, and the subsequent advent of large horticultural complexes in the northern South Island compensated for the loss of faunal calories in a seasonally economy and a managed ecology. The evidence of stone tool use is also reviewed in some detail for NTWP, following the definition of an adze typology appropriate to the classification of meta-argillite tools. It is clear that meta-argillite is the dominant material of adze and (non-adze) flake tool manufacture throughout the Maori sequence of NTWP, while granite coast quartz remains generally subdominant. Beyound the apparent loss of the laterally-hafted adze, the evidence of adze change is generally subdominant. Beyond the apparent loss of the laterally-hafted adze, the evidence of adze change is generally reflected in shifting typological proportions, and in new manufacturing technologies and dressing techniques. Functional change may be inferred in the loss over time of large meta-argillite points and blade tools associated respectively with the manufacture of one-piece moa bone fishhooks and moa and seal butchery. The exclusive identification of hammer-dressed adzes with hump backs and steep bevels in Middle Period assemblages is related to the advent of horticultural intensification. More generally, adzes of the upper Early and Middle Periods are increasingly characterized by round sections, while hammer-dressing is employed more frequently and extensively reduced from riverine meta-argillite and recycled banks. Collectively, these changes reflect a developing emphasis on economy and opportunistic exploitation. From this interpretation, and evidence that meta-argillite adze length and the size of high quality Ohana source flakes diminish over time, it is suggested that accessible, high quality and appropriately shaped meta-argillite rock became increasingly scarce through intensive quarry manufacture. In conclusion, the coincidence of diminishing rock and faunal resources over time is related in a speculative anthropological model of culture change. It is proposed that the 14th-16th centuries Maori economy of NTWP, and by implication and inference, many other regions of New Zealand, was characterized by a resource crisis which either precipitated or reinforced a broader trajectory of culture change. It is suggested that influential leadears perceived a linkage in the loss of high quality rock and important subsistence fauna at this time, and that distinctive technologies, institutions and ideologies of Middle Period Maori society were influenced by, and/or developed from, this perception. Finally, it is recommended that the data of an archaeological Maori culture sequence be ordered and tested within a radiocarbon based chronological scheme, rather than the still generally used model of �Archaic� and �Classic� cultural periods. It is also suggested that New Zealand archaeologists should look beyond the functional-ecological imperative to consider more holistic anthropological explanations of change in the pre-European Maori past, with a focus on integrated regional sequences.

Summary: In European judgment the Maoris of New Zealand are the finest of the Polynesians. The intelligence, courage and dignity of the Maori leaders have won the admiration of those who have met them in council or in the field. Their virtues have been extolled by able writers in the past and if to-day the average Maori appears to have fallen from the high standard set by an earlier generation, then that is all the more reason for turning back a hundred years to the days when the Maoris lived and fought as they pleased, when a chief was a chief, and a toa (warrior) played the part expected of him. New Zealand history does not go back so far that we can afford to pass over the Maori part of it. This is especially true of that section which refers to the period immediately preceding definite European settlement. Modern man is keenly interested in the past and research is being made into the histories of all races. Maori history is of great interest to the New Zealander, partly because it is the history of the land of his birth and partly because of its inherent epic qualities.

Summary: Although a good deal of information is available about the Maoris of New Zealand, concerning their origin, customs, and culture, yet statistical data regarding their actual numbers at any time before 1857 are comparatively rare. It is a fact that the Maori population in any given locality was a fluctuating one and that their distribution in general was very variable and this constitutes a formidable difficulty in making any estimate of their numbers before the first cenus. A second obstacle is the difficulty of travel which faced the early European explorers. For example, when Cook visited New Zealand, he made an estimate of the population but it was largely conjectural as Cook saw the natives at only those places he touched around the coast, and had in fact no means of estimating what proportion of the total population those communities formed. Actually the Maoris were not confined to the coastline, and therefore Cook�s estimate cannot be regarded as based on adequate data. An evaluation of his estimate will be made later--Chapter 1.

Summary: This thesis is a regional study of the interactions between Polynesian man and his environment in the Catlins district, southern New Zealand. The prehistory of the Catlins differs from that of the rest of southern New Zealand (Murihiku) in its pattern of early and continuing settlement followed by abandonment at the end of the seventeenth century. The examination of such a marked change in settlement pattern is likely to yield useful insights into the interplay of cultural and environmental factors. Three different approaches have been stressed: culture history, environmental characteristics and temporal changes in the environment. The relevant environmental factors were studied after consideration of the archaeological and ethnographic data. Methods of sampling and recording these factors were examined and the need to distinguish between man-induced and natural changes in the vegetation emphasised. This thesis incorporates newly gathered data on local climates, forest associations, forest clearings, estuarine populations and site location in the Catlins region, as well as on stratigraphical associations at Papatowai Point. Detailed analyses of the above disclosed that the initial economic pattern of Polynesian people in the Catlins was one of multi-resource zone exploitation of sea, estuary, soft and rocky shorelines, forests and inland plains. Early use of the Mataura and Waimea Plains may have been largely for exploiting silcrete and porcellanite sources, rather than for food supplies. It is postulates that when the climate deteriorated, sites adjacent to fewer resource zones were occupied. The earlier sites may have been abondoned, or occupied at the same time. Two settlement models, incorporating these alternatives, are presented. Seasonal markers indicate a maximum occupation from spring to autumn, and there is no positive evidence of winter occupation. About 1700-1750 A.D., the Catlins coast was abandoned, despite the continued availability of most traditional food supplies. Moas has become extinct and, judging by the data from Papatowai, seals were less abundant than in the 11th to 14th centuries. Ethnographic material indicates that the inland resources of eels, lampreys, forest birds and, presumably, bracken rhizomes were important in the 19th century to Maoris living immediately north and south-west of the Catlins. It is postulated that the local peoples ceased using the Catlins coast in the early 18th century because the dense forests made access to the inland regions difficult. With the moas extinct and seal colonies locally depleted, the Catlins coast lost much of its advantages. A new strategy was adopted of spending the summer months at the mouth of the Clutha River or west of Waikawa where the same resources could be exploited as on the Catlins coast but where inland access was easier. The Catlins coast may never have been occupied during winter, since the damp climate would militate against the storage of dried foods. Hence there is no need to assume a total shift of population in the 18th century to the north or west but rather a change in the pattern of seasonal movements.

Currently, a viable solution to provide multicast provision over a multiprotocol label switch with traffic engineering (MPLS-TE) domain is unavailable because of the missing link able to couple multicast traffic distribution with an MPLS-TE enabled network. This is due to the limited or less research investigation that was done in this area. Most of the investigation methods tackle the problem individually such as deploying internet protocol (IP) multicast in a plain network or MPLS domain but without considering a combination of both technologies that is aware of differentiated services requirements. This thesis presents an alternative solution for the multicast differentiated services provision problem over a MPLS-TE enabled network. The approach is exposed and analyzed through a practical solution that was developed within a network simulation environment. The research presented in this thesis orchestrates the already available technologies offered by the multicast protocols suite and differentiated services (DiffServ) aware MPLS-TE that allows applying separately the constraint-based routing and admission control to different classes of services. The novelty and solution of this thesis relies on using MPLS constraint-based routing concepts (e.g.traffic trunks) in order to solve TE issues revealed during multicast traffic distribution.