ABSTRACT

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is developing new design procedures to extend airport pavement design life beyond 20 years. Initially, the extended pavement life methodology will apply to runways at large-hub primary airports. A key element is a new distress mega-index similar to the Pavement Condition Index (PCI), but whose components relate to three independent components of serviceability: ride smoothness, tractive surfaces, and low Foreign Object Damage (FOD) potential. End-of-life condition is defined in terms of a serviceability threshold; however, loss of serviceability does not necessarily equal failure if major rehabilitation can effectively restore serviceability for a fixed time period. The new definition of pavement failure is compatible with life cycle cost analysis, and agrees with how airport owners/operators think of the replacement life of their pavement inventories. This paper examines the theoretical relationship between the current, exclusively structural failure criteria and the new combined (functional and structural) criteria.