2015 - Iraq - Implementation of Decision Support System in Pavement Maintenance Management

Pavement maintenance for the road network in Baghdad does not yet have scientific basis such as monitoring and evaluation. This research describes the possibility of implementing Decision Support System (DSS) in pavement maintenance management for evaluating the Asphalt Concrete pavement surface condition. Common types of Asphalt Concrete distresses including (bleeding of Asphalt, various pavement cracking modes, pot holes, longitudinal and transverse deformation) with their various severity and intensity conditions have been included in the data base of the system, mathematical models for calculating the severity and extent for each distress type was also included. The software was developed in Microsoft Visual basic environment using a logic programming process. The pavement condition rating (PCR) of the roadway sections will be determined by the system. The system suggests the required maintenance action based on expected increase in pavement life and on the cost of maintenance alternatives. The system was examined in evaluating the Asphalt pavement surface condition of the freeway leading to Baghdad international Airport. The traditional visual inspection and manual calculation procedure have also been implemented. The surface of the pavement was divided into sections, and the pavement condition was visually evaluated and rated using specially designed forms, the rating was in the range of (26- 93) % which represents "very poor to very good" conditions for the roadway section based on the rating index provided. Data were fed to the developed decision support system software. The results agrees well with that of the developed software. It was concluded that the developed Decision Support System, could assist planner, or policy maker to support decision making in pavement maintenance.