Research Topics for Enthusiastic Students

It is always difficult to estimate the cost of pavement maintenance, rehabilitation and construction. However, when comparing different alternatives, cost is one of the major decision factors. A potential research topic is to look at the current costs of construction materials as well as maintenance and rehabilitation strategies specific to pavements. Then, look at the relative ratios/differences between these costs and see whether the ratios/differences stay pretty much the same over time. Then, we could use these ratios/differences in decision making regardless of cost fluctuations. If the ratios/differences vary significantly with time it would still be useful to quantify this variability statistically.