Contested logistics: Resilience of strategic highways and railways

TL;DR

This paper develops a GIS-based network model to evaluate the resilience of US strategic highways and railways against disruptions, highlighting vulnerabilities and suggesting infrastructure investment priorities for military logistics in contested environments.

Contribution

It introduces a novel contested logistics model combining network science and GIS to assess transportation network resilience under attack scenarios.

Findings

Highways are more resilient than railways to targeted disruptions.

Vulnerable segments are concentrated in high-risk regions.

Prioritizing highway investments enhances logistics resilience.

Abstract

Military logistics rely heavily on public infrastructure, such as highways and railways, to transport troops, equipment, and supplies, linking critical installations through the Department of Defense's Strategic Highway Network and Strategic Rail Corridor Network. However, these networks are vulnerable to disruptions that can jeopardize operational readiness, particularly in contested environments where adversaries employ non-traditional threats to disrupt logistics, even within the homeland. This paper presents a contested logistics model that utilizes network science and Geographic Information System (GIS) to evaluate the robustness and resilience of strategic transportation networks under various disruption scenarios. By integrating GIS data to model logistics networks, simulating disruptions, and quantifying their impacts, we identified vulnerabilities in US power projection routes and assessed the resilience and robustness of highways and railways. Our findings reveal that highways are more resilient than railways, with greater capacity to absorb targeted disruptions. These findings underscore the importance of prioritizing investments in highway infrastructure and reinforcing vulnerable road and rail segments, particularly in high-risk regions, to enhance the resilience of military logistics and maintain operational effectiveness in contested conditions.