Evaluation of the main roads network pavement condition index with a 3D laser scanner system

Abstract

The length of the Lithuanian national road network is 21,237 thousand km, of which the highway roads are 1750,71 km. As primary roads highways have the highest requirements, the most important of which is fast and uninterrupted vehicle traffic. These key tasks, which are the responsibility of the road administration and maintenance authorities, require the maintenance of a sufficient level of service (pavement condition), which is determined by automated condition surveys with a 3D laser scanner. Evaluation of the condition of the highways with a 3D laser scanner consists of two steps: first – accurate pavement surface condition survey, second – analysis of the collected data. Afterward, the pavement condition index is determined for each homogenous sector, these indexes and sectors are parameters of the pavement management system. This article presents the new road test equipment RST63, which was launched in Lithuania and introduced innovative technologies in the Baltic States. It also presents an analysis of the pavement condition data collected by this equipment, provides up-to-date data on the highway road network, and evaluates the highway network by pavement condition index (PCI). PCI method is new methodology in Lithuania of evaluating pavement condition level through three perspectives (comfort, safety and structural indices) and combining them to one global PCI index.