Road Assets Management System
Overview/History
Communication and Works Department, after restructuring in 2017, established office of Director Road Assets Management System (RAMS) to achieve highest level of excellence in operation and maintenance of its road assets i.e. pavements, bridges, lighting, traffic signs and barriers. Globally it is an accepted principle of managing assets of road infrastructure with well defined indicators/ parameters. It is possible only if authentic condition data of assets is obtained and a decision support system in shape of central database and software tools for data analysis be employed for informed decision making and allocation of resources. It is a paradigm shift in management of assets and decision making.
Road Asset Management System (RAMS) is also a business model and management tool for Communication and Works Department that keeps the information about current status of road network, project performance, critical assets and future investment strategies for optimum utilization of public resources. RAMS is undertaking condition survey of road network of more than 80,000 km. RAMS has also procured equipment called Fast Falling Weight Deflectometer (FFWD) for measuring the amount of deflection that reflects the internal condition of the pavement.
In February 2022, Communication and Works Department signed the Record of Discussion (R/D) with Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) for technical assistance in capacity building of RAMS under the project “Strengthening of Road Assets Management System in Punjab Province”. JICA started the project in December 2022 and is helping RAMS in defining of SOPs for maintenance activities in Communication and Works Department, establishment of database system (co-hosted in PITB), development of Pavement Management System (PMS) and Bridge Management System (BMS). The duration of project with JICA is 36 months although they will keep in touch with RAMS till 2028 to access that implementation of RAMS in CWD.
Organization
The directorate is working under the supervision of Chief Engineer Punjab Research & Design Department. The following technical staff assists the Director:
| Sr. No. | Name of Posts | No. of Posts |
| 1. | Director (BPS-19) | 01 |
| 2. | Deputy Directors (BPS-18) | 04 |
| 3. | Assistant Directors (BPS-17) | 04 |
| 4. | Sub-Engineer | 01 |
In addition non-technical support staff also assists in carrying out various assignments and regular working of directorate. The total sanctioned strength of staff is 42.
COSMOS - GIS for CWD
Functions
- To keep the track of pavement and bridge inventory, ROW assets etc.
- To inspect the condition of roads and bridges periodically and keep the performance evaluation data of all such assets
- Maintain the condition data through comprehensive database system (that is co-located in PITB)
- To have liaison with Field Formation for new projects inventory, P&D (Highways) for traffic counts and axle load data, RR&MTI for pavement material information / designs and Bridge Directorate for new bridge designs etc.
- Proper functioning of Pavement Management System (PMS) and Bridge Management System (BMS)
- Data Driven Decisions for Prioritizing road maintenance
- Publication of Annual Maintenance Plans to CWD for execution of maintenance activities as well as taking up the new / rehabilitation projects through Annual Development Program
- Keeping the track of implementation of repair and development projects