MTC Asset Newsletter Summer 2004

2004 Research

Implementation of HERS-ST in Iowa and Development/refinement of a National Training Program

(Tom Maze, Iowa State University)

The highway economic requirements system (HERS) is an economic model that uses highway performance monitoring system (HPMS) data to project future highway conditions and requirements. HERS is a highly complex model that, at the national level, uses samples of the highway network taken from the HPMS data and is used for aggregate network-level analysis (planning level analysis).

When the Federal Highway Administration’s Office of Asset Management was established in 1999, it began developing the state version of HERS, or HERS-ST. A DOS version of HERS-ST was demonstrated at a workshop in 2001. Since then several improvements have been made to the software, including updates for a Windows environment and adding GIS capabilities. This project will yield an HERS-ST specifically for Iowa that can also be used as a model for other states.

Planning, Developing and Implementing the Iowa Pavement Marking Management System

(Neal Hawkins, Iowa State University)

Efforts are underway in other states to improve the cost effectiveness of pavement marking programs. This includes collecting and storing retroreflectivity data, developing contracts that include warranty specifications, and investigating ways to develop a pavement marking management system. Selecting the most cost effective pavement marking system depends on three main factors: 1) retroreflectivity, 2) durability and 3) cost. Several subordinate factors stem from these, such as type of road surface, volume of traffic, orientation with respect to traffic, quality control at the time of installation, winter sanding and snow removal practices, schedule of pavement maintenance activities, and inconvenience experienced by the traveling public during installation. In general, conventional paints are used in areas having low traffic volumes and infrequent winter maintenance; products of higher durability are used in areas having more traffic and more instances of sanding and plowing. This project is aimed at development of an Iowa pavement marking management system.

Appointment Systems for Inland Waterway Traffic Control

(Ray Mundy, University of Missouri – St. Louis)

A system of 37 locks and dams has been constructed along the Upper Mississippi River and Illinois Waterway (UMR-IW) to provide reliable commercial inland navigation. This infrastructure has a limited throughput, and delays at locks and dams create congestion, bottlenecks, and inefficiencies at certain critical segments of the UMR-IW system. More than one million barge-hours are wasted annually waiting in these queues. These hours both decrease the total quantity of goods that can be moved, and increase the transportation costs of goods that are moved on the UMR-IW. This project will adopt a complementary approach that seeks to reduce congestion by employing an intelligent appointment system at the existing locks.