Road survey guides and references

Further reading for engineers and road authorities who specify, check and use condition survey data. The guides below are published on RoadSense.

Reference hubs

Engineering guides on RoadSense

Three collections covering the South African road manuals, the engineering behind the numbers, and the source editions each method comes from.

Step-by-step methods, concept maps and journeys that connect the South African road manuals.

Pavement engineering explained through worked examples and primary references: IRI, FWD, TMH 9, TRH 12, DCP and survey quality.

Source editions, measurement methods and interpretation limits for road assessments.

Start here

01 Specify
How to specify a road condition survey
Ten steps with TMH 13 and TMH 22: road class, device class, interval, kilometre datum, validation and delivery format.
02 TMH 9
How to run a TMH 9 visual assessment
Thirteen steps on a flexible pavement, from segments and assessors to ratings, checks, photographs and hand-over.
03 IRI
Interpreting IRI on South African roads
What a roughness number tells you, and which section and measurement-quality evidence to check next.
04 TMH 13
Checking a roughness survey on a validation section
Calibration versus validation, eleven checks, a worked example and the file to keep.
05 FWD
Interpreting FWD deflection bowls
Read the shape of the bowl before choosing a treatment.
06 TMH 18
Checking a TMH 18 file set before sending
Fix the version first, then check names, empty fields, kilometre window, units and lane codes.
07 QC
Road condition survey quality control
How TMH 9 proves visual ratings, how TMH 13 proves instrument readings, and where the two meet.
08 TMH 22
The TMH 22 road asset management manual explained
What Parts A to J set out, and what the manual leaves to TMH 9, TMH 13, TMH 18, TMH 19 and the road authority.

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