The New York State Department of Transportation practices pavement management at two distinct levels: network, which deals with program development, and project, which addresses treatment selection. This two-tiered approach works well in New York, where decisions on project and treatment selection are made in 11 regional offices given policy guidance from the main office in Albany. The department's network-level pavement management system is described. The system is goal-driven and is designed to operate in a decentralised decision-making environment. Each step in the network level process is discussed - from needs estimating through goal setting and performance monitoring. In addition, an improved pavement condition survey methodology is introduced. The survey involves the use of photographic scales of pavement condition and the collection of specific distress symptoms called dominant distresses. Pavement management systems must be tailored to the organisational structure of the implementing agency. Although the decision-making processes of pavement management systems are generally not transportable, the principles of a goal-oriented approach to managing pavements are, and they should be considered by highway agencies that are developing a network-level pavement management system. (A)
Abstract