A Critical Review of the Pavement Selection Process

Ideally, the type of pavement chosen for highway construction projects is the product of an analysis resulting in the most favorable combination of economic and engineering factors expressed in terms of the lowest annual cost per mile of road. Circumstances make the analysis somewhat less than ideal because inherent in the procedure is the need to make assumptions about future maintenance and costs in order to compare alternatives over equal periods of time. This report is a critical review of the pavement selection process as practiced by the Minnesota Department of Transportation. The study was conducted by the Research and Standards Section in response to an assignment made on June 23, 1975 by the Director of Materials, Research and Standards Office who also serves as chairman of the Pavement Selection Committee. The report presents a resume' of current practice together with analysis and recommendations for improvements in the process.