Investigations regarding the degradation state of a Romanian country road

Abstract

This study is aimed to identify and to describe some of the most common types of pavement degradations that may develop on some Romanian county roads. According to the road safety management system, The County Direction of Road and Bridge Administration has the responsibility to ensure the traffic conditions, by preventing or repairing any degradation that may have adverse effects on the ride’s safety and comfort. The most common types of degradations that can be identified on the Romanian county roads are: block cracks, longitudinal / transverse cracks, joint stepping, rocking, joint sealant defects and local declines. The process of interventions for restoring the road safety condition is continuous and span through the entire lifecycle of the structure (planning, design, build, operate, maintain and decommission). In order to illustrate the degradation state and to identify the most appropriate type of intervention required to restore the road safety condition, a case study is presented. The latter consists in a county road located in the Northern part of Romania (Suceava County), designated with the route number DJ 177A. The viability of the road was evaluated based on visual inspections and laboratory testing of its component materials. Based on the experimentally results several intervention works were suggested.