Aplicação do método de apoio multicritério à decisão na escolha de pavimentos urbanos: estudo de caso em São Carlos/SP
Abstract
As a result of the expansion of cities, the need for urban pavement in Brazil is very
significant. Urban pavement benefits all citizens by providing safe and accessible circulation
in the urban space. However, pavement associated with urbanization may generate significant
changes in the environment, with long-term consequences. During the designing of projects of
this kind, one must consider that many factors are involved, such as: financial aspects,
environmental concerns, and concerns that the project meets relevant technical requirements
(durability, comfort, safety, among others). Therefore, choosing a pavement that satisfies all
of these goals can become somewhat complex. When researching the literature on studies
related to urban pavement, a common research problem was the lack of studies concerning the
choice of pavement types. In this context, it was considered that an adequate approach to this
issue would be to apply the Multicriteria Decision Analysis Approach (MCDA), which has
been widely used in the transport field. Accordingly, this research proposed the creation of a
model that can support the decision-making during the choice of urban pavements. The model
was created by means of a case study in the city of São Carlos, Brazil, which was developed
in three main stages: structuration of the problem, evaluation of different alternatives of urban
pavement types, and the recommendations on the most appropriate type of pavement. In the
first stage, the context of the decision and the actors involved were defined. Afterwards,
interviews were made to establish the structure related to decision-making problem. The
evaluation phase of the pavement choices was performed by analyzing their attributes, which
were elaborated at various levels of specificity. These attributes were given values that
represented the subjectivity of the decision makers. With this data, a numerical value was
calculated for each type of pavement using a function where the one with the highest result
was the one recommended. Three types of pavements were evaluated: Warm Mixed Asphalt
(WMA), Precast Concrete Blocks for Paving (PCBP), and a PCBP type equipped with a
structure that allows infiltration and storage of rainwater (permeable PCBP). A sensitivity
analysis was performed to validate the results obtained and to support the recommendations.
The application of MCDA in this research has provided an in-depth view about the choices of
urban pavements, including several attributes, which also expressed the objectives of the
actors consulted. During the process of defining the attributes, it was possible to obtain a
better understanding of the difficulties in evaluating these objectives, and of the strengths and
limitations of each pavement choice. When consulting the decision makers to evaluate each
attribute, it was possible to understand which attributes were most relevant for the city
managers. As a result of the case study, the WMA pavement was recommended. The model
used for this study may be replicated in other realities, and in future transport and planning
projects.