Effectiveness of a Disaster Prevention Mapping System Using Road Networks and Hazardous Elements

We develop a system that enables small groups and individuals in local communities to create disaster prevention maps with the aim of raising awareness of disaster prevention. The developed system enables persons with limited disaster prevention knowledge to complete disaster prevention maps that simulate evacuation routes for times of disaster by following three steps: collecting disaster risk factors using devices with interactive functioning, understanding relations between road network conditions and hazardous elements on a map, and analyzing relations between color indicators indicating road networks and disaster risk factors on a map to simulate risk avoidance during a disaster. To demonstrate the system’s usefulness, we compare it with existing WebGIS-based disaster prevention mapping systems and obtain the following results. The first is reduced time and effort required to record disaster prevention information. Specifically, we simplify procedures for recording disaster prevention information by using a prototype GPS logger device that can record disaster prevention information at three evaluation levels. Second, roads with high disaster risk are intuitively indicated on the map. Specifically, we use space syntax theory to calculate integration values for roads and display that value on the map as a color index along with disaster prevention information to show the road’s risk status. As a result, simulations of evacuation routes in a disaster can easily be performed. Third, we confirm that user experiences with this system are effective for recognizing disaster risk. Comparison with existing systems in field verifications show that use of the developed system effectively raises users’ awareness of disaster prevention. The above points indicate that the proposed system is an effective method for improving disaster prevention measures.