Railway Sleeper Selection via an Integrated Spherical Fuzzy Decision-Making Approach

Railway sleeper selection is an important aspect of railway infrastructure design and construction. This process involves choosing the optimal materials for railway sleepers by considering multiple conflicting factors. The present study addresses the railway sleeper selection problem within a multicriteria decision-making framework. An integrated spherical fuzzy decision-making approach is proposed to determine the best railway sleeper. The primary motivation for this study arises from the critical role of railway infrastructure in global transportation systems and the pressing need to optimize decision-making processes in this sector. A three-level decision tree is constructed with nine criteria and four alternatives. The input data required for the model are gathered by collecting the opinions of different experts. The priority values of the criteria are revealed via the spherical fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (AHP) procedure. The optimal alternative is determined using the spherical fuzzy weighted aggregated sum product assessment (WASPAS) procedure. Comparative and sensitivity analyses are performed to demonstrate the acceptability and reliability of the model outcomes. This study presents its novelty by framing the railway sleeper selection problem as a multicriteria decision-making problem and combining the spherical fuzzy AHP and WASPAS procedures to tackle the problem. Spherical fuzzy decision-making provides a comprehensive representation of uncertainty, enhanced prioritization, and realistic modeling.