Construction factors affecting as-built roughness of Portland cement concrete pavement construction

Abstract

This paper investigates the significant construction factors affecting the as-built roughness of Portland cement concrete (PCC) pavement. The panel data analysis uses as-built roughness measurements and related construction factors for reconstructed, replaced, and resurfaced PCC pavement projects in Wisconsin from 1998 to 2002. Construction factors are divided into two categories in this analysis: (1) pavement characteristics and (2) contractor's quality-based performance. The analysis utilizes the fixed effects and random effects modeling techniques to identify the significant variables in the model. The research shows that the fixed effects model, of all proposed models, provides the best estimate on the basis of Akaike's information criterion (AIC). The results indicate that pavement characteristics and contractor's quality-based past performance significantly affect as-built roughness. The findings also show that geographic locations are strongly significant.Key words: panel (longitudinal) data analysis, as-built roughness, international roughness index (IRI), Akaike's information criterion (AIC), construction factor, Portland cement concrete (PCC) pavement, highway construction.