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Phoenix666 [soylentnews.org] writes:

Researchers in the Pacific Northwest have developed a new, automated technology to analyze the potential for rockfalls from cliffs onto roads and areas below [sciencedaily.com], which should speed and improve this type of risk evaluation, help protect public safety and ultimately save money and lives.

Called a "rockfall activity index," the system is based on the powerful abilities of light detection and ranging, or LIDAR technology. It should expedite and add precision to what's now a somewhat subjective, time-consuming process to determine just how dangerous a cliff is to the people, vehicles, roads or structures below it.

This is a multi-million dollar global problem, experts say, of significant concern to transportation planners.

It's a particular concern in the Pacific Northwest with its many mountain ranges, heavy precipitation, erosion of steep cliffs and unstable slopes, and thousands of roads that thread their way through that terrain. The evaluation system now most widely used around the world, in fact, was developed by the Oregon Department of Transportation more than 25 years ago.

Makes more sense than signs that read, "Watch for Falling Rock [boyscouttrail.com]," even if it's less lyrical.

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