Identification and Assessment of Washington State Pavements with Superior and Inferior Performance

008125582000Final Research ReportPDFTech ReportWA-RD 437.1Agreement T9903, Task 71Decision makingPavement management systemsPavement performanceDesignHighwaysPavementsI22: Design of Pavements, Railways and GuidewaysI23: Properties of Road SurfWashingtonUnited StatesUnited States. Federal Highway AdministrationBaker, M. J.Mahoney, Joe P.United States. Department of Transportation. Federal Highway AdministrationWashington State Transportation CenterUniversity of Washington. Dept. of Civil and Environmental EngineeringWashington (State). Dept. of Transportation. Olympic RegionUnited States. Federal Highway Administration. Washington DivisionUS Transportation CollectionThe Washington State Pavement Management System (WSPMS) offers an organized methodology that Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) decision makers use to determine optimum strategies for providing and maintaining pavements in a serviceable condition over a given period of time. It also helps improve decision-making efficiency, provide feedback on the consequences of decisions, and ensure the consistency of decisions made at different management levels within WSDOT. Unfortunately, it is not possible, by simply scanning the WSPMS, to pinpoint reasons why pavement sections made of the same general surface materials and subjected to similar traffic and climatic conditions differ in performance. What the WSPMS can do is assist engineers in developing a candidate list of pavement sections with superior and inferior performance. Common characteristics that link multiple pavement sections are of particular interest, in part because they may reflect a common practice (e.g., nighttime construction) that leads to superior or inferior performance. This study undertook various extensive analyses and comparisons to help illustrate common attributes of Washington state pavements with superior and inferior performance. The research also reviewed field performance data for Interstate 90 within the 1999 version of the WSPMS. The purpose was to examine all pavement segments on the 480 km of Interstate 90 within Washington state. Reducing variability will allow WSDOT to produce more consistent pavement performance and will allow increasingly effective planning and forecasting. An almost certain byproduct of this increased planning effectiveness will be a more efficient allocation of available funding.81