Decision support tools for embedding climate change thinking on roads (DeTECToR)

DeTECToR is part of the CEDR Transnational Road Research Programme, Call 2015 "Climate Change: From Desk to Road". It is funded by Germany, Netherlands, Ireland, Norway, Sweden and Austria.

DeTECToR is aware of National Road Administrations' (NRA) current limitations and drawbacks: Decisions are made based on historic failure risk and deterioration patterns, and this approach may not be appropriate or cost-effective. NRAs have limited budget & resources and are unsure how to prioritise, lacking consistent methods to compare the outcomes of taking different adaptation options; this uncertain environment leads to deferment of adaptation decisions, and makes it difficult to build up a strong business case for action and favoring a conservative approach focused on short-term cost reduction.

DeTECToR aims at helping NRAs implement the latest climate change research and good practice by developing two sets of decision-support tools and guidance. The first set helps NRAs integrate climate change adaptation into economic decision-making, and the second set helps them to implement these decisions by embedding climate change adaptation into their operations and procurement processes. NRAs are being engaged throughout the development process to ensure that the tools and guidance are tailored to their needs and can be integrated into their existing processes. Pilot studies are conducted to trial the products, and capture feedback on their usability.