AUSTIN, TEXAS — An international road advocacy group recognized the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) recently for the agency’s innovative four-year maintenance management plan that establishes best practices methodology to improve pavement conditions across the state. TxDOT is the recipient of the International Road Federation’s (IRF) 2011 Global Road Achievement Award (GRAA) in the category of maintenance management.

The GRAA is an international competition that recognizes industry and government organizations for excellence and innovation in road development. This year, the IRF will honor nine projects from eight countries. TxDOT representatives will accept the award on Jan. 24 at the annual IRF awards banquet in Washington, D.C.

"Good roads equal economic growth in Texas," noted Phil Wilson, TxDOT executive director. "To that end, the TxDOT team did an exemplary job of developing a plan of best practices to address critical highway maintenance issues around the state. TxDOT employees work daily to provide a quality transportation system, one that assures seamless access and mobility for the citizens of Texas. We’re proud of the team, and we’re pleased to accept this prestigious award."

A five-member team of TxDOT engineers directed the development of a four-year pavement management plan that prioritizes roadway maintenance needs according to highway type (for example, interstate highways have a higher priority than farm-to-markets), degree of pavement damage, financial constraints, history of deterioration, and climate conditions.

Three years into the program, the results have been telling. Statewide, the percentage of highways rated at good or better has increased a percentage point in the last year, from 85.99 to almost 87 percent. Earlier predictions showed pavement condition scores would fall to below 85 percent.

The TxDOT team used established road deterioration prediction models from the Center for Transportation Research at The University of Texas-Austin to develop the plan. The models were used to analyze the damage rates for different pavements in each of the four climate regions in Texas. Rate of deterioration is different depending on soil type and weather.

In addition, a separate TxDOT peer review team conducted a three-day, in-depth reviews to identify pavement management best practices in each district. The sharing and implementation of best practices is the goal of the agency's peer review program.

Based on data from the deterioration models and results from the peer review, the TxDOT team developed a standardized set of best practices that became the foundation for agency’s pavement management plan — a comprehensive guideline for statewide road rehabilitation and preventive maintenance to maximize pavement preservation.