Paper_on_Preventive_Maintenance_of_Roads

An efficient road transport system is seen by most countries as an essential precondition for economic development, and considerable resources are devoted to road constructions and improvements. The resultant road network usually has an asset value that represents a significant proportion of the national wealth, and the road sub sector should make an important contribution to gross national product (GNP).It is , therefore , important and appropriate that this asset is managed in a business like manner. As we proceed into the 21st century, highway agencies are undergoing a significant transition from the original focus on new highway construction to the preservation of the existing highway system. These agencies are facing a tremendous challenge in preserving and improving their highway infrastructure because of aging highway networks, budget constraints, and the continuous increase of traffic demand. As a result, highway agencies have started to adopt preventive maintenance (PM) strategies into their maintenance programs. The demand to “do more with less” has become an operating slogan for many highway agencies. The level of funding by various highway agencies is inadequate to keep roads at the current condition if current maintenance and rehabilitation policies are continued. Through a preventive maintenance program, pavements can be maintained in a cost effective manner leading to a better pavement quality at lower total costs. Pavement preventive maintenance is a tool that has the potential to both improve quality and reduce expenditures for pavement network. Preventive maintenance is based on the concept that periodic inexpensive treatments are more economical than infrequent high cost treatments. Preventive maintenance is a systematic process of applying a series of preventive maintenance treatments over the life of the pavement to maintain a good condition, extend pavement life and minimize life cycle costs without substantial increasing the structural aspects. It is believed to result in lowering the agency cost, improved pavement condition and increased customer satisfaction. Preventive maintenance is applying the right treatment to the right pavement at the right time. The experience with pavement preventive maintenance demonstrates that each rupee spent now has been estimated to save up to six rupees in future. But the barriers or potential pitfalls to the development of a pavement preventive maintenance technique are public/user perception, management perception, research needs, training, dedicated funding and data management which can be overcome by explaining the added advantage of the treatment as a whole. D.G.Peshkin, T.E.Hoerner, K.A.Zimmerman, Optimal timing of Pavement preventive maintenance treatment applications, NCHRP Report 523, Transportation Research Board , 2004. Mamlouk, M.S and Zaniewski, J.P., “Pavement Preventive Maintenance: Description, Effectiveness, and Treatments,” Flexible Pavement Rehabilitation and Maintenance, ASTM STP 1348, P.S. Kanghal and M.Stroup, Eds., American Society for Testing and Materials, 1998. N. Mike Jackson, Peter E. Sebaaly, Gail L. Porritt, “Preventive Surface Treatments versus Traditional Corrective Maintenance Measures”, First National Conference on Pavement Preservation, Kansas city , Missouri, October 2005. Ralph Haas., Ronald Hudson W., and John Zane ski, “Modern Pavement Management”, Kerieger Publishing Company, Malabar, Florida, 1994. Ronald E Baker, Routine Maintenance Work Saves Pavements and Money, New Building Material and Construction World, Issue-3, Vol. 11, Sept 2005. Samuel Labi, Kumares C.Sinha, F.ASCE, Measures of Short-Term effectiveness of highway pavement maintenance, Journal of transportation engineering, ASCE, No.6, Vol.129, 2003. USDOT, ‘Pavement Preservation: A Road Map for the Future-Ideas, Strategies and Techniques for Pavement Preservation’, FHWA, October 1998.