Abstract
This article presents the development and implementation of a multi-objective decision-aid tool (MODAT) which considers different possible goals: minimisation of agency costs; minimisation of user costs; maximisation of the residual value of pavements, etc. The MODAT uses the deterministic pavement performance model used in the AASHTO flexible pavement design method. The application of the new decision-aid tool is illustrated with a case study involving the main road network of Castelo Branco, a district of Portugal. The knee point, which represents the most interesting solution of the Pareto frontier, corresponds to an agency cost weight value of 81% and a weight value of 19% for the residual value of pavements, demonstrating that agency costs, because they are generally much greater than residual value of pavements, dominate the decision process.
Acknowledgements
The authors also wish to thank the reviewers for their valuable comments and suggestions.