Papers

Planning for Resilient Roads: Approaches to Account for Climate Change Impacts on Flexible Pavement Design and Rehabilitation Practices

As the climate changes, extreme weather events can impact the performance and resiliency of flexible pavement systems. Traditional pavement design relies on historical (stationary) climate data to design and predict future pavement performance, thus changing climate may lead to under-designed pavements and constrained budgets for maintenance and rehabilitation (M&R). There are three common approaches to incorporate climate change impacts into the decision-making process to help design, build, and maintain resilient pavements. The three approaches include scenario-based (top-down), asset-based (bottom-up) and hybrid (a combination of both). Regardless of which approach is selected, stakeholder involvement and incorporating future climate projections into the analysis are crucial steps.