OSKALOOSA — The Oskaloosa City Council recently approved a contract providing $14,000 to Iowa State University’s Institute for Transportation for a “pavement management” system.

So, what will that do for the city’s ability to combat potholes and other forms of roadway deterioration?

Oskaloosa City Manager Michael Schrock Jr. said this will fund the most scientific approach to the city’s street repair problems. He added, other cities utilizing similar contracts with ISU include Iowa City, Des Moines and Knoxville.

In the coming weeks, a company called Roadware will be dispatching a van packed to the gills with computer technology to literally scan Oskaloosa’s roads — all of them.

“It’s a less subjective way of doing it,” explained Schrock Monday morning.

Public Works Director Akhilesh Pal agreed.

“I definitely think it’s more efficient because it’s more systematic and organized,” said Pal.

What will make the Roadware van’s data-gathering so helpful will be the sheer amount of information it will soak up while rolling through trouble spots such as potholes on College Hill Avenue near William Penn University. Schrock said the Roadware van will be able to log every imperfection in the roadways including how rough the road is, where cracks are and where they’re going, as well as potholes and other imperfections. He added, the van’s GPS capabilities will also play a big role in its ability to gather vital info.

Obviously, the information gathered by the Roadware van will be of use to the city’s long-term planning efforts for Oskaloosa’s roadways. Schrock said that by early next year the city will begin getting information back from ISU to use in a long-term plan for these roads.

“Ideally, this will help us plan to reconstruct or repair roads,” said Schrock. “This will help us determine our financial needs. It’s part of a road maintenance plan. I think it’s a good investment.”

 Given the fact that there is turnover in city departments, as well as city council members because of regular election cycles, a long-term pavement management system is the way to go, according to Schrock.

Pal said that the data gathered by the Roadware van could not only help in repairing and reconstructing Oskaloosa’s roadways, but that it could help the city in other ways, as well.

“There’s so much information that they will gather that will be used for every aspect, even planning for roads in the future,” said Pal.

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Herald City Editor Andy Goodell can be reached at news2@oskyherald.com