Long-Term Pavement Performance Committee Letter Report: January 20, 2011

On January 20, 2011, TRB’s Long-Term Pavement Performance (LTPP) Committee sent its 27th letter report to Victor Mendez, administrator of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), and John Horsley, executive director of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. The committee's recommendations are aimed at securing the future of the LTPP database and fulfilling the promise of better roads through the development and utilization of LTPP's products.

The report includes recommendations to retain the DataPave Online website while a planned replacement is developed, tested, and made fully operational; to develop audience-specific information about LTPP’s achievements and products, rather than one set of generic materials; to vigorously continue the incorporation into the Strategic Plan for LTPP Data Analysis the 122 research problem statements developed at the 2010 LTPP Pavement Analysis Forum; and to reexamine the schedule for implementing web-based entry of new data into the LTPP database and establish a more achievable timeline that allows for thorough testing of the improvements and iterations that are inevitably needed as "glitches" are identified.

The report also reinforces the Committee’s earlier recommendation for the establishment of the National Pavement Performance Database (NPPD) to alleviate concerns that LTPP's database lacks an institutional home that can survive near-term changes in the FHWA's organization, personnel, and policies.