Peer evaluation of multi-attribute analysis techniques: Case of a light rail transit network choice

This paper attempts to present a method for differentiating between multi-attribute decisionprocedures and to identify some competent procedures for major decision problems, where a matrix ofalternative-measure of effectiveness and a vector of weights for the latter are available. in this respect,several known multi-attribute analysis procedures are chosen, and the same procedures are exploited toevaluate themselves, based on some evaluation criteria. this is done from an engineering viewpoint andin the context of a transportation problem, using a real case light rail transit network choice problem forthe city of mashhad, and the results are presented. two concepts have been proposed in this respect andused in this evaluation; peer evaluation and information evaluation, which are investigated in this paper.in the evaluation of five multi-attribute decision procedures, based on nine criteria, and with the helpof these procedures themselves in the context of the case under study, the results revealed that theseprocedures found electre, linear assignment, simple additive weighting, topsis, and minkowski distancebetter than others, in the same order as given. this is backed by a wide range of sensitivity analyses.nevertheless, despite specific conclusions made regarding the better decision procedures among thoseevaluated, this paper finds its contribution mainly in the approach to such evaluations and choices.