1.4.1 What is performance management?

Performance management refers to a systematic process for evaluating the ability of road assets to provide the required level of service. This process should be applied to a road network rather than to individual assets.

Goals and objectives, essential for managing the highway infrastructure asset, are defined in terms of levels of service. In order to evaluate these levels of service target values of performance indicators, also called performance measures, have to be used.

Therefore, road organizations establish, implement and maintain process(es) and/or procedure(s) to measure the performance of the assets they are responsible for, and to monitor progress toward a result or goal (see figure 1.4.1, PIARC 2012, PAS55 and ISO 55000).