Pavement surface friction and noise: integration into the pavement management system

Abstract

Pavement surface friction is an essential attribute of highway safety. The desired surface friction should also accommodate the seasonal and long-term variations. The available surface friction depends mainly on microtexture and macrotexture on pavement surfaces. An increased surface texture for increased and durable friction may increase the roadway noise, which is also a growing problem. Traditional sound barriers, constructed to reduce noise exposure, are very expensive. As the pavement surface characteristics play a key role in roadway noise generation, it provides a window for noise reduction by altering the pavement surface. The challenge, however, is to provide a smooth, quiet, long-lasting, and economic pavement with adequate and durable surface friction. This paper addresses this challenge and provides a realistic guideline. The correlation of tire–road noise and surface friction is examined using data collected from five different asphalt pavements. Frameworks for desired minimum surface friction and maximum roadway noise are provided. A modified value-engineering approach is proposed to accommodate the construction and maintenance costs, longevity, smoothness, safety, and noise in the selection of pavement surfaces.