A condition assessment method for roadside assets

Abstract

Infrastructure condition assessments provide key information for monitoring the quality of infrastructure, planning and budgeting of maintenance and rehabilitation activities and establishing performance goals. Although the literature is rich in condition assessment methods for roadway pavement and bridges (and to some extent for traffic signs), it is lacking such methods for roadside assets. This paper describes the development and validation of a condition assessment method for 12 roadside asset types and maintenance activities that are related to roadway safety, drainage, cleanliness and vegetation. These assets and maintenance activities are located in the area between the outside edges of the outside shoulders and the right-of-way boundaries. On divided highways, the median is also included. The developed condition assessment method consists of a set of performance standards, a visual inspection procedure to assess compliance with these standards and a statistical analysis procedure to determine the roadside level of service. To test and validate the developed method, it was applied to five highway corridors in Texas, USA, representing different climatic conditions, topography, traffic volume and population density (urban vs. rural). These field trials provided insights into the developed method, including practicality, reproducibility and probability distribution function which best represents the sample unit score.

The development of a participatory assessment technique for infrastructure: Neighborhood-level monitoring towards sustainable infrastructure systems

“…As the technique is further developed and adopted, shorter sample units may be used and residents may be identified to assess a portion of the face block that is in front of or adjacent to their respective properties. To determine outcomes of the infrastructure assessment, procedures outlined by Gharaibeh and Lindholm (2014) were adopted. Finally, we are using a series of focus groups in compliment of the infrastructure assessment field trials to further refine the instrument.…”

“…The first component was developed by adopting an initial set of performance standards related to the safety, drainage, cleanness, and vegetation of roadside assets. That initial set of performance standards were developed through an online survey of 17 maintenance personnel from the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), followed by five field trials on highway corridors in the State of Texas, representing different climatic conditions, topography, traffc volume, and population density (urban vs. rural) (Gharaibeh & Lindholm, 2014). The original performance standards were then adopted to focus on stormwater drainage assets in local urban areas.…”

Integrated risk assessment due to slope instabilities in the roadway network of Gipuzkoa, Basque Country

“…Assessing the condition of assets such as road pavement and protection infrastructure (in this case retaining walls) allows for monitoring operational efficiency, planning future maintenance, and rehabilitation activities and controlling costs through condition forecasting models (Gharaibeh and Lindholm, 2014). Although models for predicting pavement deterioration under usual stress conditions have been used for more than 3 decades now, the literature is lacking in terms of prediction models for disruptive slope instability events.…”

Participatory action research: tools for disaster resilience education

“…Several existing tools used to assess the quality of infrastructure were adapted for this activity (Gharaibeh and Lindholm, 2014; Gharaibeh et al , 2009). These existing assessments were designed for engineering experts.…”