SSATP has reviewed a range of various tools available for managing road networks. The report can be accessed here. It provides a guide aimed at politicians and high-level decision makers in road authorities, as well as technicians and practitioners to help orient the choice of the tool the most adapted to the local conditions and demand. SSATP has also helped develop several road management tools. Information on these tools can be accessed through the following links: - RONET: Road Network Evaluation Tools
The RONET is designed to assess the current characteristics of road networks and their future performance depending on different levels of interventions to the networks. RONET is being developed to replace the functionality of the RUC and PAM models and to add new evaluation modules and output reports. RONET Version 1.0 implements two evaluation modules: Current Condition Assessment and Performance Assessment. RONET is structured with many configuration options for use in African countries and developing countries elsewhere, and was fully released in October 2007. Ghana, Mozambique, Tanzania, and Uganda have been the pilot countries during the time it took to develop and test the model.
- Roads Economic Decision Model (RED)
RED is a consumer surplus model designed to help evaluate investments in low volume roads. The model is implemented in a series of Excel workbooks that: a) collect all user inputs; b) present the results in a user-friendly manner; c) estimate vehicle operating costs and speeds; d) perform an economic comparison of investments and maintenance alternatives; and e) perform sensitivity, switch-off values and stochastic risk analyses. The model computes benefits accruing to normal, generated, and diverted traffic, as a function of a reduction in vehicle operating and time costs. It also computes safety benefits, and model users can add other benefits (or costs) to the analysis, such as those related to non-motorized traffic, social service delivery and environmental impacts.
- Standard Overall Ultra-lite Road Care Estimate (SOURCE)
The SOURCE method is based on standardized measurements of traffic and common speeds of light vehicles. The two series of data (traffic/speeds) are aggregated for the entire reference network in the form of a single macro-indicator (a pseudo-speed) that reflects the actual level of service provided by the main roads in each country. SOURCE indicators are not intended to replace conventional data on road condition. The scale of SOURCE data collection (scale of dividing up the network) would not be small enough to meet requirements for daily maintenance management or work programmming, etc. The SOURCE method does not generate the detailed road data bank that is required for road operations, but exclusively a sound “macro data bank”. SOURCE provides the minimum information, no more no less, essential to: a) Authorities in charge of roads, to justify to user-payers the performance levels obtained on the network, through transparent, well-informed dialogue, b) Decision-makers at all levels, to assess the impact of road policies on the basis of physical results. In brief, to enlighten macrodecisions.
- Performance Assessment Model (PAM): PAM is used at the planning stage to compare various options for road maintenance funding and to provide the basis for the decision-maker to decide on the level of funding for road maintenance in view of the level of performance achieved by the road network and the economic impact of the options considered. It can also be used at the evaluation stage to measure the actual performance achieved by the road network in comparison to the targeted performance. PAM is a tool for RMF coordinators that is used to assess performance of maintenance of the road network. Based on basic input data, the PAM seeks to minimize the total cost to sustaining the road network in its current condition or a desirable condition. Furthermore, the PAM enables the RMF coordinators to carry out analysis of funding deficits whereby the costs for road users are estimated at different level of funding deficit.
- Tariff and Traffic: Tariff and Traffic is a tool used to train decision-makers and managers of road funds to evaluate various funding strategies for road maintenance based on different levels of road user fees.
- The Road User Charges Model (RUC) estimates road user charges required to ensure that, for a particular country, the costs of operating and maintaining all roads are fully-funded, and that each vehicle class covers its variable costs. The model is an Excel workbook that: (i) estimates annualized maintenance costs needed to maintain a stable road network; (ii) defines countrywide annual recurrent expenditures, annual investments needs, and source of financing; (iii) estimates road user revenues from annual license fees, fuel levies, load damage fees, and tolls; (iv) analyzes the allocation of road user revenues and optimizes road user charges; and (v) computes externalities and summary macro indicators.
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