Public- and private-sector location decisions are generally madein a multiobjective planning environment. Examples include locationof emergency medical service facilities and warehouses. Various criteria considered in making these decisions may include minimization of costs, maximization of demands that are satisfied within a prespecified time or distance, and minimization of average distance from demand points to the nearest facility. Generally, location problems are formulated and solved as mathematical optimization problems. Attempts have been made to solve location problems through multiobjective optimization. Generally, these models account for more than one objective by using a variety of weighting schemes or by concentrating on one objective and incorporating the others into the model as constraints. An alternative approach to consider several objectives simultaneously is presented. The approach is based on the analytical hierarchy process, which is a useful tool in multicriteria decision making. The approach is demonstrated by a numerical example. This paperappears in transportation research record no. 1328, Travel demand forecasting: new methodologies and travel behavior research 1991
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