Scanning for potholes
City using new technology to assess road conditions
CARMEL, IN – The City of Carmel Street Department has partnered with StreetScan; a company that employs vehicle-mounted sensing technology to assess road conditions. The system uses technology to determine the health of each street and to identify road defects including potholes, bumps and cracking.
Up until now, the Street Department relied solely on visual assessments of streets by Street Department Staff to determine which ones needed to be repaired or repaved. This new technology will help supplement those efforts to identify and prioritize repairs and ensure that streets are kept in the best condition.
“The condition of our streets is something that residents and businesses do not think about on a daily basis until it becomes a problem. Neglected roads can damage cars and delivery vehicles and hinder commerce overall. This is why we work hard to stay ahead of the problem and put money in the budget each year to repave roads that have fallen below our acceptable standards,” said Mayor Jim Brainard.
The Street Department uses the PASER rating system, recognized by the Federal Highway Administration as an acceptable system of evaluating the state of road pavement when seeking grant funds. Many people think the age of a road is a good indicator, but that is not always the case. It is more determined by the wear on the road (including the number of daily vehicles or heavy trucks) along with the integrity of the
road surface.
“We are asked all the time how we determine when a street gets paved. This new technology will help us determine which streets need the most attention in a scientific and objective way,” said Matt Higginbotham, Street Commissioner.
The PASER rating scale is a 1-10 scale – with 10 being a newly constructed roadway and 1 essentially being gravel. The City prioritizes any street that contains a segment that would rate at a #3. Some longer or wider streets may have its segments averaged for a more accurate overall rating. Main roads are evaluated and prioritized the same way.
The new StreetScan technology will help to better identify and assign the PASER ratings for all the street segments. The Department will then consider the overall subdivision and prioritize the summer project list based on available funds and they attempt to spread out the projects across the City.
If you have questions, please contact the Carmel Street Department at (317) 733-2001.
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