Road Data Management

Data Collection, Analysis & Management Solutions

Any organisation responsible for managing a road network needs to collect manage, analyse and interpret some level of data about their different road assets. This is essential if these organisations are to know what is the current situation for their road assets; what are their budgetary needs (in order to obtain the funding required); and for planning and implementing the necessary works on these roads.

Without adequate data, budget estimates and works programmes are meaningless, lacking credibility and sufficient justification. This undermines the status of the organisation and makes it far more likely that the funds needed will not be provided. Conversely, by providing well-considered, needs-based justification for funding, funders are more willing to support a road agency’s funding requests.

But data is expensive to collect and its quality can significantly affect the cost of its collection. There are many different types of data that could be collected about the various road assets and all of this also needs to be updated regularly.

These factors will have significant cost and organisational implications. So it is important that each road organisation considers carefully a range of factors about their road-related data. Doing this well can save a considerable amount of money, time and trouble, whilst providing an essential foundation for well-considered and robustly justified budget requests; whilst also allowing well-targeted work programmes to be planned, implemented and monitored.

I can help a road organisation to answer important questions about the many features surrounding road data, such as:

Road Data Collection

  • What types of data should be collected about what road features (for example, apart from the road carriageway itself, should any data be captured about drainage, bridges, culverts, street furniture, earthworks, and so on)?
  • What level of accuracy should be used for these different types of data? How is this data going to be used, and by whom?
  • What organisational requirements are needed to ensure that the necessary data is collected properly, to the required quality, across all of the relevant parts of the road network and in a timely and consistent basis? Who should undertake the data collection and how should it be managed and monitored?
  • How can the different types of data be cross-referenced? In particular, what referencing system should be used for the different types of road assets? What are the advantages and disadvantages of different approaches?
  • How should traffic data be collected and integrated into any management and database system? What level of accuracy is required for traffic data (e.g. AADT, hourly, weekly and annual counting stations or classified counts)? What are the cost and organisational implications from these different options? 
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Road Data Management & Analysis

  • How should the data be used once collected? What are the analysis and reporting requirements? Can maps of the network be developed or GIS data integrated with other geospatial data, such as social and land use, to provide more sophisticated analysis and reporting?
  • How should the collected data be managed? Computerised database management systems are an important element of efficient and effective road management, allowing large amounts of data about the road assets to be managed, monitored, analysed and reported. What are the requirements from these systems? What best suits the needs of the organisation?
  • How should the data be interpreted and analysed? Pavement management systems (e.g. HDM4) can be highly complex and expensive, but might simpler (and lower cost) options be more appropriate? What system or approach would be most suitable for an organisation? 
  • What are the technical and organisational requirements and expertise needed to implement and sustain any road database and management system? 
  • How can data collection, management, analysis and reporting be implemented on a sustainable and cost-effective basis, whilst also responding to the specific needs of the various road managers, at central, regional and local levels?
  • What are the initial and ongoing costs likely to be for the road organisation?
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I have often been involved in addressing many of these issues in previous assignments in various countries; and this experience led to the development of the RoadMark system. This was designed to be as simple, fast, robust, low-cost and easy to use as possible, whilst also providing a range of key datasets about a road network, that can used for a wide range of analysis and reporting tools for road organisations. Nevertheless, I also recognise that other systems might be more suitable for some situations. 

I can assist road organisations with these important data issues, to ensure that their data collection and management systems best suit their long-term road management needs on a sustainable and self-supporting basis.