Pavement and bridge cost allocation analysis of the Intario intercity highway network

The objectives of this research are to examine the economic characteristics of the pavements and bridges of the Ontario inter-city highway network, to improve the procedures for cost allocation analysis, to calculate the rational road charges that should be levied on different vehicle types, and to analyze the effects of road prices and different pricing schemes on road users. These goals are achieved through a comprehensive analysis of pavement and bridge costs in Ontario based on the OPAC 2000 pavement performance models as well as some bridge cost estimation models and an innovative game-theoretic cost allocation approach developed in this research. Significant differences are observed between cost characteristics of pavements with different subgrade and traffic conditions and in different locations of Ontario. Due to harsher climate in Northern Ontario pavement life-cycle costs are 6 to 15 percent higher than those in Southern Ontario. The life-cycle costs of optimally designed pavements with weak subgrades may be more than 60 percent higher than those with strong subgrades for the same location and traffic conditions. The cost analysis of Ontario pavements also implies that up to 70 percent of the deterioration of optimally designed pavements is due to environment-induced damage. Large differences are found between the pavement damages imposed by commercial trucks and passenger cars. The bridge cost analysis shows that the major element of bridge life-cycle cost is the initial capital cost of construction. The deterioration of bridges is largely due to environmental factors and deicing chemicals and maintenance costs are less than 0.2% of the initial construction costs. The bridge construction cost can be estimated at about $1000/m$ sp2$ (present worth) on average for most of the Ontario bridges. It is identified that the total bridge cost is about 14 percent of total road construction and maintenance costs in Ontario. A new cost allocation procedure is developed based on the concepts of cooperative game theory. A set of rational relationships between vehicle costs and charges are established to reflect full road cost recovery and to ensure that no vehicle or group of vehicles is charged less than its marginal cost or more than its stand-alone cost. The game-theoretic approach provides flexibility, integrity, and transparency in observing the details of costs and prices under different road or taxation policies. The research also shows that vehicle operating costs dominate the total road user costs, limiting the effect of pricing strategies on efficient selection of vehicle type and payload level.