Date of Award

December 2025

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Civil Engineering

First Advisor

Sherif Gaweesh

Abstract

Rural interstate corridors in the Upper Great Plains face distinctive challenges to the deployment of Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (CAVs), including limited broadband-enabled traffic control, sparse roadside infrastructure, severe winter weather, and fragmented legislation. Although these corridors carry a substantial share of lane miles and freight traffic, they are underrepresented in CAV research despite higher crash rates and more severe operational disruptions than urban networks. These conditions create a pressing need to examine both institutional readiness and the operational impacts of CAV adoption. This study follows a two-part methodology. First, it conducts a legislative and policy review of all fifty states to identify gaps in safety standards, liability provisions, cybersecurity protections, and rural deployment readiness, with a focused comparison of the Upper Great Plains that highlights further deficiencies in cross-border data sharing, freight platooning policies, and permitting practices. Second, it develops a microsimulation of the I-29 corridor between Fargo and Grand Forks, North Dakota, using traffic and geometric data from NDDOT. Five CAV penetration scenarios (20, 40, 60, 80, and 100 percent) were evaluated under two driver behavior frameworks: the internal Wiedemann 99 model with CoEXist Cautious, Normal, and Aggressive profiles, and an external Intelligent Driver Model (IDM) implemented through a C++ dynamic link library. Performance measures included delay, stops, speed, and safety conflicts using the Surrogate Safety Assessment Model (SSAM). The findings reveal wide variation in CAV legislation across the United States, with rural states showing critical gaps in permitting consistency, liability rules, and broadband-based traffic management. Recommended actions include harmonized permitting, standardized liability provisions, and targeted infrastructure investment. Simulation outcomes confirm that higher CAV penetration improves mobility and safety, with the external IDM model achieving the strongest gains. Under the 100 percent IDM scenario, rear-end conflicts decreased by 79.96 percent, lane-change conflicts by 67.16 percent, and overall conflicts by 76.67 percent, while the internal model achieved a 60.86 percent reduction at full adoption. These results provide policymakers, transportation agencies, and industry partners with evidence-based guidance for advancing safe and sustainable CAV deployment on rural interstate corridors.

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