Innovative Road Maintenance: Leveraging Smart Technologies for Local Infrastructure

Roads are essential for economic development, facilitating the circulation of services and resources. This research seeks to provide local governments with a comprehensive framework to enhance road maintenance, focusing on the surface and functional evaluation of pavements. It compares the conventional methods International Roughness Index (IRI) and the Pavement Condition Index (PCI) with novel methodologies that employ smart technologies. The efficiency of such technologies in the maintenance of local roads in Peru is analyzed, taking as a case study a 2 km section of the AR-780 highway in the city of Arequipa. The International Roughness Index (IRI) obtained through the Merlin Roughness Meter and the Roadroid application were compared, finding a minimum variation of 4.0% in the left lane and 8.7% in the right lane. Roadroid turned out to be 60 times faster than the conventional method, with a cost difference of 220.11 soles/km (USD $57.92/km). Both methods classified the Present Serviceability Index (PSI) as good, validating the accuracy of Roadroid. In addition, the Pavement Condition Index (PCI) was evaluated with conventional methods and a DJI Mavic 2 Pro drone, finding a variation of 6.9%. The cost difference between the methodologies was 1047.73 soles/km (USD $275.72/km), and the use of the drone proved to be 10 times faster than visual inspection. This study contributes to closing the knowledge gap regarding the use of smart technologies for better pavement management on local roads, so the actors in charge of such infrastructure make decisions based on science, contributing to the well-being of the population.