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Chapter 1. INTRODUCTION This report describes the development and implementation of a tool to estimate the effects of heavy vehicles on local roads. The main focus of the tool is to determine the effects of additional heavy vehicles that were unknown and could not have been considered at the time the roadway and pavement were designed. This situation could arise due to new commercial facilities bringing additional vehicles on a permanent basis, the temporary additional heavy vehicles required for some major construction activities, the location of new mining activities and associated haul routes, or for other causes. The tool developed as part of this project compares the impact of the vehicle loading that was expected when the pavement was designed to the impact of vehicle loading including additional vehicles associated with newly constructed or conceived traffic generators. Project Objectives The primary objective of this project was to develop an analysis method and a corresponding tool for local road and highway agencies to use when evaluating the impact of heavy vehicles and large volumes of traffic. Often the vehicles under consideration are comprised of large volumes of unexpected vehicles attributable to specific developments or events, such as the construction of a new warehouse or distribution center, development of wind energy farms, etc. Report Content The report describes the activities of the research team over the duration of the project, the development of the associated tool, and the interactive training program utilized for its implementation and dissemination. The remainder of this chapter includes a review of literature relating to the evaluation of impacts on pavements due to heavy vehicles. Chapter 2 describes the development of the analysis methods incorporated into the tool for assessing the impacts of additional heavy vehicles. Chapter 3 presents the analysis tool and its development and intended use. Chapter 4 presents conclusions and recommendations for the tool's proper use, and suggestions for future development. Literature Review This section includes the review of literature and of other tools for evaluating the effects of heavy vehicles on local roads and city streets. Through the review of the literature and knowledge of pavement design, analysis, and performance, it is clear that three parameters have the greatest effect on the pavement condition and longevity. These include the characteristics of traffic, pavement materials (and construction practices), and the environment. Each of these are discussed below, as well as other topics including various methods of pavement design, types of damage caused by vehicles and by the environment, and the expected impacts on the pavement life. Much of the discussion in this review draws on work from the Heavy Traffic Generators Project (1) funded by the Minnesota Local Road Research Board. That work focused on the impacts of wind turbine construction on county roads. There are similarities and differences between this work and the Wind Tower project. The primary similarity is the way the two analyze impacts on pavement due to heavy vehicles. Some of the differences include the pavement sections (rural