Assessment of Performance-Based Contract for Maintanance Management of Dar es Salaam Bus Rapid Transit Road Infrastructure

Abstract

Road authorities in developing countries are striving to adopt the maintenance approach that could enhance improved maintenance condition and design life of the road’s infrastructure that get affected by level of maintenance employed. The overall objective was to assess the application of the output and performance-based road contract on maintenance management of Dar es Salaam bus rapid transit road infrastructure. The specific objectives were: To examine the implementation of output and performance-based of road contract; secondly, to assess the challenges encountered by stakeholders in the implementation of maintenance contract; and examine user’s perceptions on the maintenance condition of Dar es Salaam bus rapid transit road. Furthermore, the study sought to propose means in which the performance-based road contract could enhance smooth implementation of maintenance management of Dar es Salaam bus rapid transit road infrastructure. This is qualitative study, that employed an exploratory cross-section case study design. The purposive sampling techniques were applied, while data were collected through document review, interviews and observation tools. Direct observation, structured and semi-structured interviews were employed to obtain primary data. The findings show that cleanliness of road surface, functionality of road signs, marking and furniture contributed to non-compliance of contract. The study concluded that maintenance condition of parts of road sections was influenced by ineffective surveillance by authority and shortage of road’s assets maintenance engineers. The knowledge generated from this study can be useful for maintenance management of other bus rapid transit facilities planned in Tanzania.