Adapting pavement evaluation methodology to the performance based contract of the Fredericton-Moncton Highway Project (A Public-Private Partnership)

In 1996, the New Brunswick Government embarked on a public-private partnership process for the construction of a 4-lane, 195 km Fredericton - Moncton Highway. Maritime Road Development Corporation was selected as the preferred proponent in September 1997 and contracts were signed in January 1998. A Develop, Design and Build (DDB) contract for the construction of the highway, and a Operate, Maintain, Manage, & Rehabilitate (OMM) contract with a thirty year 30 year term, 1998 to 2028 were the primary contract documents. The project was constructed in four years (1998 to 2001) and was delivered ahead of schedule. The highway was opened in various segments throughout construction and is now being maintained under performance based criteria. The completed highway consists of 195 km, four lane controlled access highway, 12 km of four lane, high speed connector highways, 20 interchanges, 73 bridges and 4 maintenance facilities. The OMM contract addresses many operational issues including line painting, crack sealing, asphalt repairs, re-shouldering, bridge maintenance, signs, barriers, illumination systems, among many others. One of the most important criteria however is pavement management. The pavement management contract requirements require continuous monitoring of various pavement parameters including, surface distress (including rutting), ride quality and pavement structural strength. Each of these pavement parameters has an associated trigger value to initiate rehabilitative or restorative actions. Concerns were raised that the maintenance standards were too rigid particularly as pavements approached the trigger values and that these trigger values were based on older performance measurement technologies. This paper will explain how a pavement evaluation methodology has been adapted to satisfy the monitoring and evaluation of the pavement performance requirements in this performance based contract. The data’s analysis in the contract’s context will also be discussed. It also demonstrates how specifications must allow management of maintenance and rehabilitation programs to address the life cycle of highway pavements.