Innovative Pavement Solutions Under New Procurement Systems in the United Kingdom

The procurement of new construction or major maintenance schemes on the motorway and trunk road network in the UK has dramatically changed in the last ten years following a Government Private Finance Initiative. From an engineering point of view, the introduction of private sector responsibility has been a catalyst to encourage change, with much more emphasis on achieving certain levels of performance, although some new ideas have not been without problems. The contractor/consultant consortia often carry more risk than in a traditional contract where designs and specifications are more prescriptive. However, some of these forms of contract have encouraged innovation, particularly by bringing in ideas from other countries and adapting them to the UK situation. Case studies describing the above innovative solutions, as well as premature pavement failures due to the introduction of new materials and construction techniques are presented.