{"ID":23475866,"CreatedAt":"2026-09-18T01:09:05.407443952Z","UpdatedAt":"2026-09-20T18:11:56.143995915Z","DeletedAt":null,"paper_url":"https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.19350","arxiv_id":"2609.19350","title":"From Corridor Selection to Earthwork: A Multi-Stage Framework for Automated Road Design via Steiner Trees and Convex Optimization","abstract":"Designing road networks for wind farms in complex terrain is a challenging task, especially under tight construction budgets. Traditional manual methods are time-consuming and may yield suboptimal results. We propose a structured three-phase optimization framework, TriPhase, to automate and minimize road construction costs from corridor selection to earthwork. Phase one formulates corridor selection as a Steiner minimum tree problem over a terrain-aware graph, incorporating slope and curvature constraints. In phase two, each road segment undergoes horizontal alignment optimization using a bilevel model, where a mixed-integer program evaluates vertical alignment costs. To ensure solver compatibility and performance, the model is reformulated explicitly for Gurobi. The final phase applies a network-wide convex optimization model to refine vertical alignment. Numerical experiments on real-world sites demonstrate up to 14% cost savings compared to industry-standard manual designs, validating the framework's effectiveness and practical relevance.","short_abstract":"Designing road networks for wind farms in complex terrain is a challenging task, especially under tight construction budgets. Traditional manual methods are time-consuming and may yield suboptimal results. We propose a structured three-phase optimization framework, TriPhase, to automate and minimize road construction c...","url_abs":"https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.19350","url_pdf":"https://arxiv.org/pdf/2609.19350v1","authors":"[\"Paavai Manimaran Vanjeenathammal\",\"John R. J. Thompson\",\"Warren Hare\",\"Yves Lucet\"]","published":"2026-09-16T19:27:26Z","proceeding":"cs.CE","tasks":"[\"cs.CE\",\"math.OC\"]","methods":"[]","has_code":false}