Using State PMS Data to Validate the New Mechanistic/Empirical Pavement Design Guide (MEPDG)

The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) through the National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) has spent over $7 million developing a new mechanistic-based design method, which is presented in the Mechanistic-Empirical Pavement Design Guide (MEPDG). This provides a golden opportunity to emphasize the project level aspects of pavement management. Pavement management system (PMS) data, carefully taken and expanded, can be used directly to calibrate the new MEPDG. In general, eight state departments of transportation (DOTs) were visited in detail and indicated they were capable of using their PMS to calibrate the MEPDG at some level. A great deal of information about the plans that each state was undertaking to calibrate the MEPDG was also obtained. These ranged widely from "wait and see" to already having a consultant on board. It is not the purpose of this paper to evaluate the MEPDG itself but to deal with the calibration of the MEPDG using long-term pavement management data. The fact that the MEPDG has problems is mentioned, because this has major impact on the efforts and attitudes of the states and has thus impacted this project. There are many benefits that can accrue to a state DOT by using its PMS database to calibrate the MEPDG. Not the least of these is the fact that this provides an excellent opportunity to re-strengthen the connection and coordination between pavement management and pavement design in the state DOT. States also need to undertake preliminary analysis of the data in their database to test pavement predictions based on the as-built data as compared to the initial performance predictions obtained in the design process. This study shows that each State or Provincial agency should develop a Satellite Pavement Management/Pavement Design Database. This database would include the regular pavement management data but for each project being designed and constructed using the MEPDG. The data used in the design phase would be tabulated in electronic format, transferred, and stored in a Satellite/PMS database.

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• Authors:
  • Hudson, W R
  • Visser, Willem
  • Monismith, Carl L
  • Dougan, Charles
• Conference:
  • Seventh International Conference on Managing Pavement Assets
  • Location: Calgary Alberta, Canada
  • Date: 2008-6-23 to 2008-6-28
• Publication Date: 2008

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 14p
• Monograph Title: 7th International Conference on Managing Pavement Assets, June 23-28, 2008, Calgary, Alberta, Canada: "Preserving What We Have, Investing in the Future, and Finding the Balance"

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Calibration; Databases; Pavement design; Pavement management systems; Pavement performance; State departments of transportation
• Identifier Terms: Mechanistic-Empirical Pavement Design Guide
• Subject Areas: Design; Highways; Pavements; I22: Design of Pavements, Railways and Guideways;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01447696
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Sep 28 2012 3:30PM