A Statewide Pavement Management System

TLDR

A pavement management system was developed for Arizona to generate optimal maintenance policies for each mile of its 7,400‑mile highway network. The system employs a dynamic, probabilistic mathematical model that integrates policy decisions, budgets, environmental factors, and engineering inputs to optimize maintenance. In its first year, the system saved $14 million—about one‑third of Arizona’s preservation budget—and is projected to save $101 million over the next four years.

Abstract

A pavement management system was developed for the State of Arizona to produce optimal maintenance policies for each mile of the 7,400-mile network of highways. The heart of the system is a mathematical model which captures the dynamic and probabilistic aspects of pavement maintenance. The model integrates management policy decisions, budgetary policies, environmental factors, and engineering decisions. During the first year of implementation, fiscal year 1980–81, the system saved 14 million dollars (almost 1/3 of Arizona's preservation budget). The forecast savings over the next four years is 101 million dollars.