RMS Reports

This research project developed a data-driven Granular Roadway Asset Management System (GRAMS) to assist local agencies in making more reliable gravel loss estimates and consequently determining annual aggregate (rock) requirements for proper budgeting purposes. In this study, a series of online and in person meetings and interviews were conducted along with electronic mailing surveys to gather information to develop a Microsoft Excel-based user-friendly GRAMS. Advanced statistical analysis methods such as the beta regression model and survival analysis were used as computational algorithms for estimation and risk analysis. When the user enters several input values, the GRAMS can generate a range of estimates for varying budget conditions and different levels of service. The tool is expected to significantly help local agencies to obtain consistency in terms of estimating gravel loss and determining aggregate (rock) requirements, and as a result, they can better defend their granular road maintenance budget requests and management. This tool is primarily based upon empirical data, and further calibration is recommended for enhanced estimation.

Deficiency or inadequate allocation of road maintenance and development funds leads to total road network degradation. In order to ensure proper condition of road pavement with a limited budget, we need road maintenance optimisation for the entire road network. The road maintenance optimisation can be achieved using knowledge-based strategic planning systems. The collection and analysis of necessary data help design different road maintenance long-term strategies. The output results help select priorities for road maintenance and proper fund allocation. Optimal road maintenance strategy is the way to keep a fairly good road network with available funds. In addition, the road user costs can be reduced. The aim of this paper is to offer a road maintenance management system for Lithuanian conditions. The model will help evaluate the performance of the current road network and prepare a multi-year priority list for road works.

Granular roads account for more than 75% of roads managed by Iowa counties. Granular roads experience rapid deterioration and more quickly develop various localized problems compared to paved roads. Frequent and regular maintenance is needed to keep the roadway performance at a desired reliability over its lifetime. Current granular road asset management practices are primarily on an ad hoc and reactive basis, which may not be the most efficient approach. The lack of a reliable and practical tool to estimate gravel loss over time, and thus the required amount of aggregate (rock) that needs to be purchased, is one of the major problems that local agencies currently face. This research project developed a data-driven Granular Roadway Asset Management System (GRAMS) to assist local agencies in making more reliable gravel loss estimates and consequently determining annual aggregate (rock) requirements for proper budgeting purposes. In this study, a series of online and in person meetings and interviews were conducted along with electronic mailing surveys to gather information to develop a Microsoft Excel-based user-friendly GRAMS. Advanced statistical analysis methods such as the beta regression model and survival analysis were used as computational algorithms for estimation and risk analysis. When the user enters several input values, the GRAMS can generate a range of estimates for varying budget conditions and different levels of service. The tool is expected to significantly help local agencies to obtain consistency in terms of estimating gravel loss and determining aggregate (rock) requirements, and as a result, they can better defend their granular road maintenance budget requests and management. This tool is primarily based upon empirical data, and further calibration is recommended for enhanced estimation.

An excellent report if you are interested in how to select maintenance treatments.

 

The objective of this research, carried out between 2012 and 2015, was to improve the treatment selection algorithm (TSA). The TSA is used to forecast the timing and treatment type of works required to maintain roads in good condition for the least whole-of-life cost in the short to medium term. The output was a candidate list of sites intended for validation in the field combined with recommended drainage improvements and funding estimates. Since the TSA was developed, the long-term pavement performance monitoring sites have yielded much practical information; pavement and surface condition measurement techniques and parameters have developed; and economic analysis parameters have changed. The algorithm, used to guide future surface and pavement works, needs to be updated to reflect current knowledge and recent experience. Recommended improvements include the consideration of thin asphaltic surfacings and maintenance cost data. The vehicle operating cost model and benefit-cost ratio funding mechanisms have been superseded and a new present value model is recommended. This incorporates new data sources now available such as falling weight deflectometer and high-speed data capture.

Traffic collisions cost Uganda millions of dollars each year. The purpose of this
descriptive case study was to describe the strategies and processes needed to implement a
road management system. Such a system would significantly reduce the fatalities and
accidents in Uganda, improve the transportation within Kampala’s business district, and
increase business profitability. Three conceptual theories framed the research study:
management theory, strategic management theory, and criminology theory. Using a
snowball sampling strategy, data were collected from open-ended interviews,
questionnaires, observations, and archived documents from 20 administrative participants
in the government and organizational leaders involved in the transport operations and
transport services in the Kampala business district in Uganda. Data were analyzed using
3 phases: (a) interpretational analysis, coding, and grouping segments; (b) structural
analysis, consistency, and quality; and (c) reflective analysis, consequences, what, when,
where, and how. Five themes or action requirements emerged from the data analysis: to
improve transport operations and transport services profitability, reduce traffic jams and
fatalities, provide sufficient driving training, maintain road infrastructure, and maintain
traffic law enforcement. The findings and recommendations from this study may
improve the profitability of businesses, reduce the traffic jams and fatalities, and improve
the gross domestic product of Uganda, thereby contributing to positive social change.

This study presents two methods for the prediction and estimation of Maintenance and Rehabilitation (M&R) works based on the Highway Present Condition Index (HPCI) and statistical trend of rehabilitation period that is applied to paved low-volume roads. Since low volume roads comprised the majority of the country’s highway pavements having damage and distress characteristics that are totally different from high volume roads, specific criteria and guidelines are established. The results of the study have shown that economical costs for M&R must be viewed cumulatively in a specific M&R time frame compared to a yearly evaluation of individual costs. In particular, it has been shown that lower criteria of HPCI for rehabilitation within the serviceable level, although predicting higher individual costs at the later times, are still found to be the most economical option compared to service level criteria with higher HPCI values. Similar trend of results are found with a criteria for M&R based on maximum periods of rehabilitation, which showed a more economical choice compared to that when average and frequent periods of rehabilitations are made.

This document contains the workshop proceedings from the Transport Community of Practice Workshop on Road Asset Management held at the ADB headquarters on 25-26 November 2013. This includes summaries for each session, case studies tackled, and key conclusions and actions.

Road Asset Management (RAM) has long been an important area of intervention for Asian Development Bank (ADB) assistance to its developing member countries (DMCs). This reflects the demands of DMCs for rational, transparent, and sustainable use of road assets, which ADB aims to support through technical assistance, grant, and loan projects extended to road agencies of DMCs.

As part of the overall Improving Road Asset Management in Asia and the Pacific (iRAM) initiative, a workshop was held on 25-26 November 2013 at the ADB Headquarters in Manila. The workshop identified the recent development in RAM, identified successes and failures, and learned from a number of case studies around the world. Presenters included individuals from ADB, the World Bank, the Department of Public Works and Highways (the Philippines), and established academic institutions.

The workshop's key findings and conclusions as well as actions moving forward: (i) RAM needs to be considered as an integral part of project arrangements. To achieve this, additional RAM capability to support projects in the development phase will likely be required; (ii) A RAM maturity  assessment that is applicable to those authorities just commencing RAM is required; (iii) A long-term (5-10 year) plan is required for the establishment of a sustainable RAM program within a road authority (based on the findings of the maturity assessment); and (iv) Information technology systems and associated data collection should be kept to a minimum level to increase the chances of attaining a sustainable RAM outcome.

The dTIMS asset management tool which has been adapted for use by Western Australia Local Government Agencies (WALGA) is intended to be used to assist asset managers in predicting future road network conditions and to predict the appropriate amount of funding required to meet both specified levels of service and to optimise the user of the available budget.

 

This documentation provides the user with detailed knowledge and guidance of the different components within the dTIMS asset management tool to allow effective application. The components are:

 the deterioration models used to predict future pavement

conditions;

 the data required in order to run the pavement deterioration models;

 the basic operation of the dTIMS asset management tool for connectivity with RAMM;

 system understanding to provide the user the ability to customise dTIMS to suit their local conditions.

Comprehensive report by the World Bank looking at the issue of transport infrastructure - roads, ports, airports, railways - and how they should be managed. An amazing amount of effort went into collecting the data in the report.

The aim of the Framework is to enhance the sustainable management of local government assets by encouraging ‘whole of life’ and ‘whole of organisation’ approaches and the effective identification and management of risks associated with the use of assets. It encourages a long-term view of asset management and requires local governments to understand and then meet the impacts of social, economic and environmental change in ways that ensure sustainable use of physical and financial resources. The Framework emphasises the importance of local governments developing robust asset management plans linked to rigorous long term financial and strategic planning as part of an integrated planning approach as set out within the Integrated Planning and Reporting Framework and Guidelines. Without this, any attempt to effectively and sustainably deliver the strategic direction of the organisation will be unsuccessful.

Road should be viewed as an important national assets. Like any other assets, road must be regularly maintained to keep them serviceable. The study conducted on the Road Maintenance Branch, whereby this branch was established specifically to manage the assets of the Federal Road to the Public Work Department of Malaysia. The aim of this study is to investigate on how to improve road maintenance management system in order to reduce time and cost. The study is carried out through interviews, questionnaires and archives from the Public Work Department. Interviews were conducted with the personnel involving in road maintenance management. The questionnaires were distributed to those who are involved in maintenance activities at the Public Work Department. The type of road involved in this study was a Federal Road, P27 under Public Work Department supervision. The data collected were analyzed using an average index method to obtain the result. From the result, the most common problem occur during the implementation of Road Maintenance Management System is to get the funds for the road maintenance. Public Work Department should consider to monitor the work carried out by the concessioners in order to improve the Road Maintenance Management System.

This is a catalog of available Commercial Off the Shelf (COTS) software applications, prepared for the World Bank. It summarizes different applications that are available as well as key features of those applications.

Version 2.0: Updated February 2009.

The primary objective of the project was the development of criteria to define the end-of–life condition of pavements. These criteria could then be used in pavement performance modelling to obtain a more robust measure of remaining life. Another objective was the generation of a new model for maintenance costs. This could then be combined with the existing models for roughness and rutting to define a distress level at which rehabilitation should occur. None of the maintenance cost models developed were particularly successful in producing a reliable prediction of maintenance costs based on the pavement characteristics available from RAMM. Therefore, a logit model was developed to predict rehabilitation decisions. The major factors in the rehabilitation model were maintenance costs, traffic levels and roughness. The rehabilitation decision model derived for this study predicted rehabilitation decisions well. Approximately 72% of pavements that had been rehabilitated were predicted as requiring rehabilitation. When tested on the Nelson network data, which was not used for calibration of the model, a similar performance was obtained indicating the models developed were relatively successful.

The development of gravel deterioration models for adoption in a New Zealand gravel road management system.

Part A of this report focuses solely on the improvement of unsealed road performance through construction and maintenance processes. Reducing gravel loss can have significant benefits – not only in lowering maintenance costs, but in placing less demand on winning gravel, reducing dust emissions, less surface ravelling, better ride qualities and improved road safety. While the gravel loss model is based on existing management practices, it is important that practitioners apply latest scientific practices relating to all aspects of unsealed road management to ensure that gravel loss is minimised. The primary purpose of these notes is to provide practical guidelines on how best to handle the various factors contributing to gravel loss. Addressing some or all of these aspects will lead to a considerable reduction in gravel loss and in time the deterioration models can be calibrated to reflect the application of best practices.

Attention has to be given to a wide range of engineering practices (listed below) to ensure gravel loss is kept to a minimum:
• road geometry
• drainage
• pavement design and materials
• maintenance practices
• stabilisation practices
• performance evaluations.

The data from the past five years was analysed and the results are presented in Part B of this report. It is important to recognise the original objective of this experiment, which was to derive only a gravel loss model for application in New Zealand. Furthermore, the monitoring programme was constrained in terms of finances, which did not allow for a fullscale testing programme such as those undertaken in South Africa and Australia.

Danish Road Institute Report 150. In this report noise-related parameters of existing pavement monitoring systems are presented and evaluated and the possibilities of integrating acoustic parameters in pavement management systems are discussed.

Paper by Zimmerman that summarizes the efforts of three different types of agencies and their use of multimedia tools in on-going pavement management efforts as training programs and reporting mechanisms.

Prepared for the World Bank, the report describes a review of implementations of road management systems at 21 agencies in 16 countries. It contains recommendations on the range of issues to consider in RMS projects in the area of processes, people, IT and data collection.

Paper by J. Roberts. The Paper describes the development and Pilot implementation of a Road Infrastructure Management System (RIMS) for Greece. The Project was undertaken for the Greek Ministry of National Economy by a joint team composed of staff from the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA) and ARRB Transport Research Ltd, formerly the Australian Road Research Board (ARRB). The project started with an assessment of current practice in Greece and internationally, followed by a scoping study and concept design. A project for system development and Pilot implementation was then commissioned.

This report is a study of the current practices for identifying, measuring, and articulating the public benefits of highway system maintenance and operation, and of communicating those benefits that are understandable and meaningful to stakeholders—road users, elected officials, and others who have an inter-est in the system’s performance. It includes information on the difficulties public agencies encounter in explaining these benefits.

This report describes a methodology for determining the optimal timing for the application of preventive maintenance treatments to flexible and rigid pavements. The methodology is also presented in the form of a macro-driven Microsoft® Excel Visual Basic Application—designated OPTime—available to users by accessing the NCHRP website (http://trb.org/news/blurb_detail.asp?id=4306). The methodology is based on the analysis of performance and cost data and applies to any of the treatments and application methods that are used by highway agencies.

This paper presents a case study that illustrates how to address various issues involved in conducting a strategy analysis that have not been well documented in the Highway Development and Management Series Books. It is deemed to be a useful training material for the upcoming HDM-4 courses to be held in Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina under the sponsorship of the World Bank.

Overseas Road Note 1. This note is a practical guide to the management of road maintenance. It is targeted primarily at those district engineers in developing and emerging countries who do not have access to computer-based information and management systems.

An Analysis Using HDM-4

Paper on optimizing road investments with HDM.

This paper provides an overview of all the road management systems, their areas of application and inter-action between them.

Fact Sheet on Opti-Grade which provides a complete, low-cost solution for measuring road condition.

It is considered that the PLATO Analysis Engine provides a leading edge approach in modelling and software capability for management of road infrastructure at all levels of analysis from Strategic through Programme to Project level feasibility studies. PLATO incorporates Road User Effects models sourced from HDM-4, and Road Deterioration and Works Effects models, which although starting with HDM-4, have been greatly modified and supplemented to enhance their credibility, consistency and sensitivity to critical parameters.

Pavement Management Software Catalog which includes a wide range of software packages to suit both States and local jurisdictions. Also includes a section on data collection equipment.

Effects of Less-than-Optimal Maintenance

Identifying maintenance treatments with HDM.

Report describing how the HDM PDWE model was implemented in New Zealand for pavement management.

Application of HDM-4 in Australia to determine the treatments which give the lowest life-cycle costs. Good example of a strategic analysis with some innovations.

Paper on Roughton International's Road Asset Management System (ROMAPS).

Draft Report presenting a framework for a RMS for Laos

The SEPM provides an urgently-needed capability to identify forward investment needs in the roads sector, and will support and be supported by the more detailed preparation of spatial development plans at any level. Thus the SEPM provides a macro-planning tool for the whole of Indonesia.

Paper on the implementation of a Road Maintenance Management System and a Road Asset Management System.

World Bank paper on using HDM to justify paving unpaved roads

Maintenance treatments, triggers and the effect of maintenance in the New Zealand HDM modelling.

Report on study to develop user cost models for the Florida Department of Transportation's implementation of AASHTOWare™ Pontis™. The project features a literature review and survey, a thorough analysis of the sensitivity of Pontis to various user cost factors using Florida bridge data, gathering of additional data available within the Department, and analysis of the additional data.

This Note is intended for engineers and managers in road administrations who are responsible for the specification, procurement, implementation and operation of computer-based road management systems. It offers guidance to help them reach informed decisions about the type of road management system which will best match the needs of their administration and the most effective methods to be used for operating the system.

Summary of project which used HDM to prioritize road investments for Gujara state

Application of HDM-III to determine road investment program for Nepal

Paper showing how HDM can be used to establish design standards for new pavements

Calibration and application of HDM-III for a feasibility study in Nepal.

How HDM-III was modified and calibrated to Myanmar for the Comprehensive Transport Study.