Skip to main content

Fugro complete ‘7,000km’ TRASS contract

Fugro Aperio collected and processed data from up to 7,000km lanes of English trunk roads as part of a just completed Traffic Speed Structural Survey (TRASS) contract. The work, commissioned by TRL on behalf of the Highways Agency (HA), saw the Cambridge-based survey specialist gain information using the HA’s Traffic Speed Deflectometer (TSD). The innovative TSD technology uses Doppler lasers to measure the speed at which the pavement deflects in response to load.
April 23, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
2929 Fugro Aperio collected and processed data from up to 7,000km lanes of English trunk roads as part of a just completed Traffic Speed Structural Survey (TRASS) contract.

The work, commissioned by 777 TRL on behalf of the 2309 Highways Agency (HA), saw the Cambridge-based survey specialist gain information using the HA’s Traffic Speed Deflectometer (TSD).
The innovative TSD technology uses Doppler lasers to measure the speed at which the pavement deflects in response to load. The non-contact IT allows surveys to be conducted at up to 80kph, vastly reducing the risk to motorists caused by slower moving deflection techniques such as deflectograph and falling weight deflectometer (FWD).

The survey data, gathered over a two-month period during February and March 2012, is part of the HA’s drive to implement annual structural testing on the English trunk road network. It will be used to help service providers better identify and prioritise maintenance schemes as well as to help calculate the value of the pavement asset.

TRASS surveys have been underway since 2009, with the ultimate aim of using them for scheme level assessment and design by 2016.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Using radar to deliver a fine runway finish
    April 4, 2014
    Radar Portal Systems (RPS) has spent a lot of time developing its sophisticated pavement top-surface photometric imaging system so it can cater specifically for the aviation market. This has now been specially developed for use on aircraft runways and taxiways The system was recently used at Brisbane Airport to survey runway and runway shoulders, collecting photometric top-surface data at a 4m width at speeds of up to 100km/h. This dataset allows the firm to display meshing data of the runway surface showin
  • Winner Profile: iCITE Data Aggregator by Eberle Design Inc for traffic management
    May 21, 2019
    There is a global need for more intelligent traffic management and enhanced road safety, fuelled by data collection and the useful interpretation of that data into real-time information that provides for effective action by traffic engineers. The prevailing transportation paradigm, one-person-one-vehicle, is forcing the multimodal traffic infrastructure to its limits. With continuous congestion, longer commute times, and increased accidents, agencies are tasked with finding solutions without escalating thei
  • European Transport Safety Commission makes call for traffic safety boost
    July 10, 2015
    In 2013, 7,600 people died in road traffic while cycling or walking in European Union (EU) countries – the equivalent of a commercial airliner full of passengers being lost every week Because of this risk of death, the European Transport Safety Council (ETSC) wants vehicle manufacturers and local authorities to pay special attention to improving safety for cyclists, walkers and pedestrians. In a new report, the ETSC said the numbers being killed are falling more slowly than those for vehicle occupants. Over
  • Yotta’s Horizons and Mayrise create a route map of the world
    September 14, 2016
    Simon Topp, director of international business at software developer Yotta, explained the need for having the best possible plan in place. Highways agencies and departments the world over face a raft of complex and difficult challenges when it comes to managing and maintaining their infrastructure assets. In some countries, where natural disasters or extreme weather events are endemic, good asset management will need to be supplemented by risk and resilience planning. In the US, for example, the Feder