Can Management Techniques Solve Pavement Woes?
by Corinne S. Bernstein, Asst. News Ed.;Serial Information: Civil Engineering—ASCE, 1984, Vol. 54, Issue 3, Pg. 66-69
Document Type: Feature article
Abstract:
Cities are increasingly turning to systematic procedures for allocating scare manpower and funds and measuring pavement repair and rehabilitation needs. Many cities have adopted pavement management systems (PMS) to evaluate pavement condition, set repair and rehabilitation standards and formulate budget needs. Pavement management schemes generally include data bases on the pavement design of a city or region, construction and repair histories, surveys of roadway conditions and some systematic means of setting pavement maintenance priorities. In setting up a PMS, a city faces a variety of challenges. City engineers must convince elected or appointed officials of the benefits of the PMS. Adequate manpower, equipment and funding must also be available. The city or region must educate their staff in how the PMS works and what its costs and benefits are. The staff must be involved in setting up the program, and must be trained in data collection and use. Acquiring adequate computers and training staff in their operation is often a major hurdle. Case histories in Waterloo, Ontario; Palo Alto, California; Arvada, Colorado; and Tacoma, Washington demonstrate the use of PMS to solve pavement problems. PMS differ depending on the nature of the region involved, its administrative procedures and political structure and the geotechnical differences unique to the area. An ongoing challenge for each PMS is to continue to use and refine the program to formulate better objectives for long-term pavement needs and budget forecasts.
Subject Headings: Rehabilitation | Pavement condition | Pavements | Pavement design | Urban and regional development | Urban areas | Systems management
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