Asphalt Material E-Ticketing Workflow: Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis

Abstract

E-ticketing was an intriguing technology to many state transportation agencies (STAs) pre-COVID-19 pandemic but gained significant attention upon arrival of the pandemic due to the contactless nature of the technology. Research completed prior to the pandemic into E-ticketing for asphalt paving primarily identified qualitative benefits and concerns. However, minimal academic literature exists in the postpandemic era discussing the additional E-ticketing benefits not previously captured which resulted in increased implementation by STAs. This research seeks to address this gap by gathering information from state members of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials Committee on Construction (AASHTO COC), employees of the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC), and members of the Kentucky Association of Highway Contractors (KAHC) and the Plantmix Asphalt Industry of Kentucky (PAIKY) regarding E-ticketing practices for asphalt paving in the postpandemic era. The first portion of the study combines national and state-level survey responses to create a qualitative benefit-cost analysis for E-ticketing for asphalt paving operations based upon experience gained through emergency implementation during the pandemic. To reinforce the results of the qualitative analysis and increase the power of the study, the second portion of the research creates a quantitative benefit-cost analysis (BCA) from data collected from KYTC construction projects to compare the traditional weigh ticket collection process with E-ticketing processes for both project engineers and inspectors. The analysis shows a statistically significant time savings for field employees but not project management personnel. The monetary analysis for Kentucky indicates that whereas E-ticketing does not result in significant time savings for all employees, there is substantial monetary benefit worthy of STAs adopting E-ticketing as policy. The primary contributions to the body of knowledge include an improved BCA methodology applied to a new domain of electronic bulk material tickets and an informed quantitative BCA framework useful for STAs as a proof-of-concept to champion E-ticketing implementation and by transportation-focused researchers for evaluating emerging technological applications. Previous research has focused on improving safety and task efficiency for field employees associated with asphalt paving operations. E-ticketing (electronic ticketing) has been proposed as an innovative technology to help augment typical tasks associated with asphalt paving. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, several state transportation agencies (STAs) had introduced pilot projects to study E-ticketing, but these yielded minimal policy adoption results. During the COVID-19 pandemic, many STAs pivoted to emergency usage of E-ticketing as the primary means of collecting information about asphalt material used on construction projects. This research compares previous qualitative analyses regarding the benefits and concerns associated with E-ticketing prior to the COVID-19 pandemic with lessons learned by STAs across the country after utilizing E-ticketing during the pandemic. Additionally, a case study focused on the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) is used to create a quantitative benefit-cost analysis from project-level data collected from various asphalt paving projects during the 2022 construction season. The findings indicate a statistically significant time savings for field employees utilizing E-ticketing and a benefit-cost ratio that promotes STAs adopting E-ticketing as a permanent policy.