To Pave or Not to Pave: A Framework for Systematic Decision Making in the Choice of Paving Technologies for Rural Roads

Abstract

Investment in road infrastructure is an integral part of the development strategy of any country. The challenge for policy makers, road planners, and engineers is to provide roads that meet their functional and structural requirements in a cost-effective way. The spectrum of options ranges from earth to gravel, to low-cost surface treatments, to full paving with asphalt or concrete. The key question is, which roads to pave and which ones not to pave. Standard practice in rural road project evaluation is based on an economic analysis that uses a discounted comparison of the costs and benefits of paving versus nonpaving solutions over the project life cycle. The benefits identified are usually related to travel time and vehicle operating cost savings, and fail to capture important but hard-to-quantify benefits such as climate resilience, dust avoidance, land value improvements, benefits to nonmotorized transport users, and the reliability of the road in the rainy season. This paper presents a paradigm shift and introduces the Systematic PAving DEcision model—SPADE—which considers variables under a multicriteria analysis that affects the paving decision in a systematic and holistic way, while maintaining economic justification.