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Virginia Tech

Pavement Surface Characteristics Evaluation Using Vehicle-Based Data Collection

Abstract

dc:description.abstract

Various methods are used to collect pavement surface conditions, varying from manual checks by employees to specialized equipment. However, traditional methods usually require expensive specialized equipment and are time-consuming and costly. This thesis examines the use of connected vehicles (CV) to collect pavement surface data estimated based on sensors mounted in the cars. This concept was first analyzed through a literature review, where CV technology was examined to measure roughness, friction, and pothole data. Data collection was performed by a specialized company, utilizing sensor data from standard manufactured cars. A sample of data from the Richmond district of Virginia, was used to compare the estimated values to the standard International Roughness Index (IRI) values used by VDOT. Data collected using both methods were matched using Matlab code to have a common linear referencing system. Subjective visual comparison showed that both data sets had similar trends, highlighting roads with rough sections. A quantitative analysis performed to compare the average results of the two methods on a sample of uniform sections, showed a high correlation. A technology assessment was also conducted to evaluate the maturity level of the CV, which was found to be at least a TRL 7. This suggests that CV technology can be a valuable addition to the traditional methods for collecting pavement surface data.

Degree

thesis:*
Name thesis:degree_name
Master of Science
Level thesis:degree_level
masters
Discipline thesis:degree_discipline
Civil Engineering
Department dc:contributor.department
Civil and Environmental Engineering
Grantor dc:publisher
Virginia Tech
Year dc:date.issued
2025

Author and committee

dc:creator, dc:contributor.*
Author dc:creator
  • Mardirossian, Grace
Chair dc:contributor.committeechair
  • Flintsch, Gerardo W.
Committee members dc:contributor.committeemember
  • de Leon Izeppi, Edgar D.
  • Trani, Antonio A.

Subjects

dc:subject × 4

Rights

dc:rights
Statement dc:rights
  • In Copyright
Language dc:language.iso
en

Identifiers

dc:identifier.*
Dc Identifier Other
vt_gsexam:41801
OAI identifier oai:identifier
oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/124338

Chain of custody

source
Harvested from
Virginia Tech
Base URL
vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/oai/request
Last updated
2026-07-22
Source record
OAI-PMH GetRecord
citation

Mardirossian, Grace. Pavement Surface Characteristics Evaluation Using Vehicle-Based Data Collection. masters thesis, Virginia Tech, 2025. https://hdl.handle.net/10919/124338