Annual visual assessments form the backbone of the Gravel Road Management System operated by the Provincial Government of the Western Cape in South Africa. Information is used to identify, quantify, and prioritize periodic maintenance activities; to describe the condition of individual roads and road networks; and to monitor their performance. The current assessment methodology is well described and has been applied for over 10 years. Although assessors are well trained and calibrated through regular formalized training sessions, inconsistencies still occur, which result in some variability of the final results. Efforts have been made to identify shortcomings in the assessment methodology, training, and quality control process. Duplicate assessments carried out each year on 10% of the road network were analyzed for this purpose, as were assessments of selected road sections carried out by all assessors during the annual training sessions. The assessment methodology and quality control process are discussed briefly, and the results of the study to improve the quality of visual assessments for network-level road management are highlighted.

A description is provided of the procedure followed in the gravel road management system (GRMS) of the Provincial Administration: Western Cape (PAWC) for determining scheduled maintenance priorities and upgrade to paved standard priorities for gravel roads. An algorithm was developed that takes account of a number of factors to determine the costs and benefits of PAWC’s two maintenance strategies. Cost and benefit streams are further used in the calculation of the internal rate of return (IRR) for the different maintenance strategies. Prioritization in the GRMS is based on the calculated IRR, and the priority lists are further refined through a consultative process involving maintenance personnel, the community, and head-office decision makers. As part of the implementation of the algorithm, Highway Development and Management System version 4 (HDM-4) equations for the calculation of vehicle-operating cost (VOC) were simplified for application in the southern African context. Results are presented of a comparison between the output of the simplified HDM-4 equations with the output of HDM-4. Conclusions reached show that implementing the procedure described had a number of positive consequences. They include that the prioritization of projects is based on sound principles that result in the effective and responsible use of available funds. It was also concluded that the simplified HDM-4 VOC calculation results compare well with HDM-4 results.