Maximizing Resource Effectiveness of Highway Infrastructure Maintenance Inspection and Scheduling for Efficient City Logistics Operations

The safe and efficient movement of people and cargo on roadways is dependent on a well functioning highway system which requires effective maintenance policies focused on the maximum use of invested resources. For efficient city logistics operations various components of highway infrastructure, such as pavements, guardrails, and roadside signs must be maintained and kept in acceptable operating condition as elements of an integrated highway network. Due to the shrinking budget for undertaking infrastructure inspection and maintenance activities Resource Effectiveness (RE) becomes paramount. Theoretically, Resource Effectiveness (RE) is intended to get the optimum performance out of a project or investment. Instead of adding more resources (like labor, equipment, etc.), it will concentrate on the prudent utilization of resources or investment. Thus, RE in a broader sense, is concerned with the prudent use of labor, equipment, and material. In this paper we develop an optimization approach for maximizing resource effectiveness of highway infrastructure maintenance investments, subject to budget constraints, based on the concept of the well-known Cobb-Douglas production function. Several examples are presented.