International Collaboration between Road Agencies

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International Collaboration between Road Agencies

• Gregers Hildebrand, Danish Road Directorate

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Outline of presentation

• The Danish Road Directorate and our research
  agenda
• International collaboration at
• Multilateral level
• Bilateral level
• Ad hoc project level

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The Danish Road Directorate

• Part of The Ministry of Transport
• Main offices in Copenhagen
• Approximately 900 employees
• 3,800 km of state roads in Denmark (5 of total
  network)
• DRDs network carries 45 of road traffic in
  Denmark

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The Road Directorates primary tasks

• Planning, construction, and maintenance of the
  state road network
• Operation and traffic management on the State
  Roads
• RD, Co-operation, data and standardisation in
  the road sector

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DRD strategic focus areas

• Climate change
• Environmental protection
• Traffic noise
• Road construction techniques
• and technological improvements
• Contracting strategies Public-private
  co-operation
• Road safety
• Traffic flow quality

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The Danish RD agenda strategic focus areas

• Reduce CO2-emission,
• energy comsumption
• Adaptation to climate changes
• Reduce noise
• Ensure value for money
• Improve road safety
• Improve mobility

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Through cooperation !

• Common development of
• Best Practice and exchange
• of competences
• Reduce duplicated RD
• and access to data exchange
• Co-financing of large scale projects
• and thus multiplying value for money

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5-step approach for RD projects
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How do we co-operate at the international level?

• Multilateral partnerships
• Bilateral partnerships
• Ad hoc projects

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Multilateral partnerships

• CEDR
• FEHRL
• ERA-NET ROAD
• NordFoU

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ERA-NET ROAD

• What?
• Coordination and implementation of road
• research in Europe running from 2006-2011
• Who?
• 17 national road administrations
• How?
• Jointly funded research programs based on trust,
  understanding and commitment

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Why joint funding?

• Increase value for money - pay 100 000 and get
  research worth a million
• Minimize research duplication
• Share research results
• Use the best competencies to carry out the
  research
• Hence achieve increased efficiency

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The asset management call an example of success

• Funding scope 4.5 mil. US funded by ERA-NET
  ROAD partners themselves
• 20 proposals were submitted for the cross-border
  funded joint research programme
• 9 countries were not members of the funding
  Programme Executive Board of ERA-NET ROAD
• 6 countries were not ERA-NET ROAD members
• Projects started in 2010 and run over two years

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ERA-NET ROAD after 2011

• ERA-NET ROADs success provides us with a
  permanent future for the collaboration
• and the future might expand beyond Europe
• Continuation through CEDR
• See more at www.eranetroad.org

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NordFoU The same but different anyway

• Nordic research collaboration between Denmark,
  Norway, Sweden, Finland and Iceland
• Since 2004
• Based on the same principles as ERA-NET ROAD
• NordFoU is about to move into railways as well

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NordFoU compared to ERA-NET ROAD?

• NordFoU is less bureaucratic than ERA-NET ROAD
• NordFoU allows us to focus on solving specific
  Nordic research needs
• NordFoU allows us to speak with a common Nordic
  voice in larger European research collaborations

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Achievements so far in NordFoU

• Six projects are completed
• Seven projects are active
• Seven projects are underway
• Projects in many different topic areas except
  climate and environment
• See more at www.nordfou.org

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Pavement Performance Models an example of a
NordFoU project

• Four countries participated
• 3-year project period
• Total budget 1.2 mil. US
• Models to be implemented in Nordic Asset
  Management Systems
• Models based on input data from modern traffic
  speed monitoring vehicles
• Un-spent funds used for continuation of original
  project

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Bilateral partnerships

• California
• The Netherlands

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Danish Road Directorate and CALTRANS/UC DAVIS
(USA)

• Collaboration since 2007
• Guide for Caltrans Pavement Noise Policy
• Binder testing and expert support for development
  of new optimized quieter asphalt mixtures
• Evaluation of quieter asphalt mixtures
• Pavement ageing and noise

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Danish Road Directorate and CALTRANS/UC DAVIS
(USA)

• Senior researcher one year in California
• Trans-Atlantic workshop on climate change,
  pavement materials and road noise
• Continued collaboration on
• Road noise
• CO2 reduction
• Pavement materials

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Danish Road Directorate and DVS (The Netherlands)

• Collaboration since 2004
• DRI-DVS noise abatement program
• Optimization of noise reducing pavements
• Pavement solutions yielding 10 dB traffic noise
  reduction
• Dutch Air Quality Innovation Program
• Bearing capacity with TSD-measurements
• Blue spot mapping of national road network

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Collaboration at project level

• MIRIAM on rolling resistance of roads
• TSD on bearing capacity of roads

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MIRIAM (Models for rolling resistance In Road
Infrastructure Asset Management systems)

• 2010 - 2011
• Project initiated by Denmark in 2009 with strong
  and increasing interest to participate from other
  countries
• Aim reduce rolling resistance and hence lowering
  fuel consumption, CO2 emission and increasing
  energy efficiency
• Twelve partners from Europe and USA

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MIRIAM

• Funding as well as research production was
  carried out through transnational collaboration
• This willingness shows that collaboration is
  possible
• Continuation ?

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Traffic Speed Deflectometer Australia and
Denmark cooperation

• Agreement between DRD and RTA, NSW
• Application of the Traffic Speed Deflectometer in
  NSW and QLD
• Testing of bearing capacity of 18,000 km of major
  roads
• Tests conducted in 2010

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Conclusions

• We have achieved a lot through international
  research cooperation
• Technically, economically, personally
• We have been able to use our expertise areas as
  payment for new knowledge in other areas
• You need a research strategy
• International cooperation takes time and money
  but it is worth the effort