Simulating highway infrastructure management policies

Highway infrastructure management requires enabling computer tools to facilitate the decision-making process. A Decision Support System (DSS) for one of the nine districts in the Commonwealth of Virginia was developed through the application of System Dynamics concepts. The DSS has three major components: a highway management system, a management information system, and a results presentation system. The highway management system is the backbone of the DSS and includes a pavement management system and a bridge management system. It is used to simulate the dynamics of infrastructure deterioration and maintenance. Through evaluation of measures of effectiveness, it assesses the effectiveness of budget allocation policies to the maintenance activities of different roads and bridges. The management information system is used to calibrate the DSS by documenting over 250 parameters. The results presentation system is used to display a measure of effectiveness against one or two decision parameters in 2D or 3D charts, respectively. The DSS is thus a tool to enable the formulation, interpretation, and implementation of highway maintenance policies.