Valuing the wider benefits of road maintenance funding

摘要

A new analysis tool has been developed by TRL, on behalf of the Department for Transport, to help assess the user and other impacts of maintenance as well as the direct maintenance works costs. This new tool has been developed in line with a recognised asset management view of the assessment of road maintenance. Studies for roads in Scotland, by Transport Scotland and local roads in England, by the RAC Foundation with ADEPT, have recognised that the impacts of maintenance funding levels are wider than the direct works costs and the costs of disruption to road users. This work uses the change in the condition of the road network over time under different spending trajectories to assess the impacts on the wider costs to society in relation to future maintenance activity. Currently, not all effects can be quantified but the aim with the new tool is to enable users to consider a wide range of potential impacts resulting from the changes in carriageway conditions and the maintenance works undertaken on the network under different funding levels and maintenance policies. Preliminary analyses using the tool for local roads in England (excluding London) have shown the suitability and flexibility of the tool.