Multi-objective decision-aid tool for pavement management

Abstract

This paper presents the development and implementation of a multi-objective decision-aid tool tested with data from Oliveira do Hospital's pavement management system. The pavement management system includes the following components: a road network database; a quality evaluation tool; a cost model; a pavement performance model; and a decision-aid tool. Nowadays, the pavement management system decision-aid tool uses a deterministic section-linked optimisation model with the objective of minimising the total expected discounted costs over the planning time-span while keeping the road pavements within given quality standards. The multi-objective decision-aid tool uses a multi-objective deterministic section-linked optimisation model with three different possible goals: minimisation of agency costs (maintenance and rehabilitation costs); minimisation of user costs; and maximisation of the residual value of pavements. This new approach allows pavement management systems to become interactive decision-aid tools capable of providing road administrators with answers to ‘what-if' questions in short times.