Providing a Robust Optimization Model for the Preventive Maintenance of Asphalt Road Pavements

Road maintenance and transportation administration must plan the maintenance of the road asphalt network and manage the annual budget. In addition, the primary purpose of doing preventive maintenance (PM) activities is to improve the condition of the asphalt. The purpose of this paper is to present a model for pavement maintenance planning. The goal of this research is to reduce the total International Roughness Index of asphalt roads by taking into account the weight of each part of the road. This research focuses on pavement conditions, addressing the surface layer and its direct impacts on ride quality and durability. A budget has also been set aside annually for road asphalt maintenance. Additionally, sensitivity analysis is performed on the presented model to observe the impact of parameters on the objective function. As a result of changing the budget values, it is established that the objective function improves when that parameter is increased, since it is more flexible. Additionally, the cost of the PM activity was changed, but the objective function remained unchanged. By providing a proper schedule for PM activities and accurate budget management, this model can assist in improving the condition of asphalt. Moreover, this model has been implemented for the roads of North Khorasan province in Iran and its results have been presented. Road maintenance and transportation administrations could use this model to manage their budgets and carry out their PM activities.