Rating City and County of Denver Urban Pavement Constructability Using a Profiler
Publication: Practice Periodical on Structural Design and Construction
Volume 15, Issue 1
Abstract
The international roughness index (IRI) was developed in 1986 to generate a longitudinal roadway profile analysis tool for asphalt surfaces. The IRI is typically applied to freeway and rural highway facilities where uninterrupted spans of asphalt are expected. The city and county of Denver (CCD) in cooperation with the University of Colorado Denver have examined the application of the IRI to urban roadway facilities. Elements of urban roadways that influence IRI values include drainage infrastructure and cross-street access. This paper details the equipment and methodology used to address challenges in assessing urban constructed roadways with the IRI. Repeatability studies were completed using five different inspectors involved in the data collection activities. The results indicated that repeatability varied between different inspectors by approximately 2%. A before-repair and after-repair study was completed on newly resurfaced roadways around the CCD in an attempt to establish a set of baseline values for the application of the IRI to urban roadways. The IRI values for a sample of 23 test cases showed a weighted average postpaving improvement of approximately 36%. Recommended urban IRI values for good and acceptable surfaces are suggested at 150 in./mi (2,367.44 mm/km) and 220 in./mi (3,472.24 mm/km), respectively.
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Acknowledgments
The writers thank the city and county of Denver for the funding and resources supporting this project. The Street Maintenance Division including William (Pat) Kennedy, Brian Roecker, Clayton Goodwin, Lindsey Van Cleave, and Angie Hager for providing valuable assistance in data collection and input for the project. Rachelle Urso and Darren Weldon of the University of Colorado at Denver are also appreciated for their contributions to the project. Jim Barwick of the city and county of Denver’s public works division is also acknowledged as the over all manager of the CCD UCD research program that began in 1997.
References
ASTM. (2004). “Standard test method for measuring the longitudinal profile of traveled surfaces with an accelerometer established inertial profiling reference.” ASTM E950-98 (2004), ⟨http://www.astm.org/Standards/E950.htm⟩ (Nov. 15, 2008).
Federal Highway Administration. (2006). “2006 status of the nation's highways, bridges, and transit: Conditions and performance.” ⟨http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policy/2006cpr/chap12.htm⟩ (Nov. 13, 2008).
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Reggin, A., Shalaby, A., Emanuels, R., and Michel, G. (2008). Urban considerations for using road roughness to manage road networks, City of Winnipeg, Canada.
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Staley, B. (2009). “Adaptation of the international roughness index for use on urban roadways in the city and county of Denver.” MS thesis, Univ. of Colorado, Denver.
Wilde, W. (2007). “Implementation of an international roughness index for Mn/DOT.” Mn/DOT Final Rep. No. MN/RC-2007–09, Minnesota State Univ., Mankato, Minn.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Practice Periodical on Structural Design and Construction
Volume 15 • Issue 1 • February 2010
Pages: 44 - 49
Copyright
© 2010 ASCE.
History
Received: Feb 17, 2009
Accepted: Apr 30, 2009
Published online: May 4, 2009
Published in print: Feb 2010
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