Life-Cycle Economic Evaluation of Alternative Road Construction Methods on Low-Volume Roads

Abstract

The province of Saskatchewan has the largest number of public roads per capita in Canada and one of the largest in the world. Over the past decade, pressures on the road network have increased, resulting in accelerated road damage and increased demand to upgrade portions of the highway network. To address transportation infrastructure sustainability issues, Saskatchewan Highways and Transportation (DHT) and Pavement Scientific International, Inc., are researching more cost-effective methods. The research work involves evaluating the technical and economic feasibility of undertaking alternative road construction techniques. A critical component of this research effort is to evaluate the economic feasibility associated with different road construction techniques. The ability to perform whole-life economic analysis associated with long-term infrastructure assets is important to long-term sustainability. By comparing the present value of initial construction and future preservation costs across different road structures and technologies, an accurate assessment of construction and design options is achievable. On the basis of performance predictions and projected structural performance, resource allocation can be optimized more reliably across limited resources and alternative road strengthening systems, providing technically sound solutions that are more economically attractive. With an ability to predict whole life-cycle performance on the basis of future maintenance treatments, road managers can more reliably assess alternative surfacing and structural preservation strategies. The primary focus of this paper is to demonstrate the economic considerations undertaken in evaluating alternative road design and construction methods. This longer-term evaluation approach allows strategic investments in highway infrastructure and allows DHT and other agencies to consider innovative road structural rehabilitation and management strategies more effectively.

Managing cost implications for highway infrastructure sustainability

“…Chan et al (2008) believe highway infrastructure funding will continue to fall short of future infrastructure needs. Highways typically have a long-term life span and are usually designed for a life cycle period of 50 years (Gerbrandt and Berthelot 2007). In life cycle cost assessment, the analysis period depends on the nature of the project.…”

Importance of Sustainability-Related Cost Components in Highway Infrastructure: Perspective of Stakeholders in Australia

“…maintain service levels and long-term financial viability (Gerbrandt and Berthelot 2007;Gransberg and Molenaar 2004). Cash-flow constraints at points in time should also be resolved through long-term financial planning.…”

“…Costs related to environmental and social measures eventually involve soft factors that display inconsistency in measurement approaches (Surahyo and El-Diraby 2009). Existing BCA and LCCA models for highways are primarily concerned with direct market costs, such as road construction and maintenance costs and crash damages, and how these vary depending on roadway conditions (Chou et al 2006;Gerbrandt and Berthelot 2007;List 2007;Madanu et al 2009;Ugwu et al 2005). Early attempts to address the new sustainability aspects differ significantly in their consideration of environmentally-and socially-related costs (Quinet 2004;Surahyo and El-Diraby 2009).…”

Trend of the Research on Public Funded Projects

“…They compared the DB method with traditional design-bid-build (DBB) approach through 835 military construction programs to find out the DB method had better performance in three of six metrics and it was best suited for various facility types. Those of theoretical analysis go a little further by conducting exploratory qualitative research [56], revealing the relationships between research objectives [57], producing theoretical models [58], and establishing problem-solving framework [59]. In Nitithamyong and Tan's research [60], they investigated the important roles of project management consulting firms (PMCs), the key factors contributing to their effective performance and the suitable assessment criterion for performance through literature review and questionnaire survey, and established a framework of key success factors for achieving satisfying PMC performance.…”