Improvements need in evaluation of road rehabilitation projects

Abstract

At the completion of this research, we hope to achieve several objectives; development of a methodology to identify possible impacts and their quantification (identify the benefits of the placing roads as direct and indirect impacts on social and physical infrastructure, geographical, community and Household characteristics), determination of appropriate parameters to use in HDM-4 for economic analysis (determine the most significance parameters and determine economically appropriate parameters to Sri Lanka) and preparation of a guideline for impact evaluation. The Road Development Authority (RDA) in Sri Lanka uses the evaluation method “HDM -4” but parameters to Sri Lankan conditions are not determined correctly and no study to check its suitability to Sri Lanka has been done. Impact on environment, economy and society, road safety and quality are not properly taken into account when doing the analysis at present and it causes lots of problems in the respective areas of study. Huge wastage of money takes place as a result of wrong decisions taken in planning stage due to various reasons. A socio economic questionnaire survey is carried out and social data are collected in 10 roads in four provinces and data collected. Roughness data, traffic counts and other more required data are collected from the field to use in HDM- 4 analysis in these roads. Different requirements and problems were discovered in different locations (socio parameters) and among them common issues were identified. Those common issues must be taken into account when rehabilitating a road. Further, the significant issues identified should be monitored during the data collection stage as well as in post construction stage. It would help the authorities to overcome the problems that they are facing now in constructing roads and monitoring them. Social, economical data should be collected according to the requested guidelines and they should be analyzed properly.