Staff / About the Iowa Pavement Management Program

Staff

• Omar Smadi, PhD, team leader, 515-294-7110 or smadi@iastate.edu
• Zach Hans, PE, research engineer, 515-294-2329 or zhans@iastate.edu
• Chris Albrecht, AICP, transportation research specialist, 515-294-7684 or calbrech@iastate.edu

What is IPMP?

The mission of the Iowa Pavement Management Program (IPMP) is twofold:

• support the management, planning, and programming needs of transportation agencies
• provide pavement management information, tools, and training for project- and network-level activities

IPMP promotes optimal, cost-effective decisions on highway maintenance, rehabilitation, and reconstruction, using accurate past and projected pavement conditions.

IPMP integrates data collection and a database to track the condition of pavements on non-National Highway System (non-NHS) federal-aid-eligible roads. Non-NHS roads may be in state, county, and city jurisdictions.

What does IPMP do?

IPMP focuses on local transportation agencies and provides these agencies with

• an objective and consistent planning tool to support development of regional and statewide transportation improvement plans
• information on pavement condition for individual pavement sections
• raw pavement distress data from the automated distress collection equipment
• inventory and history information on roadways
• training on pavement management software and principles
• videologging of roadways

The IPMP Timeline

1991

The Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 (ISTEA) required that a pavement management system be used for all highways, street, and roads eligible for federal funds.

1994

A task force consisting of city, county, and regional governmental representatives and Iowa DOT staff members began development of a pavement management system for all non-NHS highways, roads, and streets in Iowa available for federal aid.

At this time, the pavement management project was divided into three phases:

1. production of an implementation plan
2. implementation of the system
3. operation of the system

1995

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) certified the pavement management system in January 1995.

1996

The pavement management system was renamed Iowa Pavement Management Program (IPMP). This name change reflected the shift from a mandatory statewide system to a voluntary program for local agencies. This shift occurred because of the National Highway System Designation Act of 1995, which made optional those management systems previously mandated by ISTEA.

Evaluation and planning stage of the Iowa Pavement Management Program completed.

1999

IPMP design phase completed.

1999-present

IPMP maintains the implementation and operation phase.