High Speed Condition Assessment Guideline

Version 2: December 2015

Condition assessment is a key measure of road network performance and a major determinant of road user costs. Condition data is used in pavement management systems to monitor the network condition and predict its future condition.

Condition data is used to support a range of asset management decisions which aim to provide an efficient and effective road network. It is also one of the primary indicators for network level maintenance programming, and for monitoring the network’s performance, managing term maintenance contracts, benchmarking among Road Controlling Authority (RCA) networks, research and fatal crash investigations. Therefore, it is essential to ensure the quality of the condition data is not compromised and a high standard is maintained.

This manual provides a common approach to high speed condition assessments on local authority roads in New Zealand. It provides an overview of factors that should be considered before condition assessments are undertaken, the limitations of survey equipment and survey procedures.

The manual also discusses the collection of roughness and rutting using laser profilometer and Response Type Roughness Measuring Systems (RTRMS) and provides specific contract procurement guidelines, and calibration and validation criteria that will ensure appropriate equipment is used to collect pavement condition data.

This information will help RCAs make well-informed decisions about procuring high speed data collection services for surveying roughness and rutting on the network. It includes a survey methodology to improve the quality and consistency of measurements in successive surveys so they are comparable. There is also a full data collection specification included in Appendix 1 which can be used or modified to suit individual RCA requirements.

This is a free item which you can download at any time.