SECTION 1. Chapter 6C of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2020 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after section 77 the following 2 sections:-

Section 78. (a) the following definitions shall apply for the purposes of this section:

“Life-cycle cost”, the total cost of the initial project plus all anticipated costs for subsequent maintenance, repair, or resurfacing over the life of the pavement.

“Plain joined cementitious concrete”, cement concrete pavement with no reinforcement and proper joint placement.

(b) The department shall develop and implement a life-cycle cost analysis for each project for which the estimated total pavement costs exceed $1,000,000.00, funded in whole, or in part, with state funds. The department shall design each project in both “Hot Mix Asphalt” (HMA) and “Plain Jointed Cementitious Concrete” (PJCC), and award paving projects utilizing the material having the lowest Life Cycle Cost.

(c) Except as otherwise provided in this section, life-cycle cost shall compare equivalent designs, and shall be based upon Massachusetts actual historic project maintenance, repair, and resurfacing schedules and costs as recorded by the Department pavement management system, and shall include estimates of user costs throughout the entire pavement life.

For pavement projects for which there are no relevant Massachusetts actual historic project maintenance, repair and resurfacing schedules and costs as recorded by the pavement management system, the department may use either of the following as a substitute for the requirements listed in subsection (a):

1. Actual historical and comparable data for reasonably equivalent designs from states geographic locations with similar climates, soil structures, or vehicle traffic; or

2. The department may determine appropriate estimated maintenance, repair, and resurfacing schedules for a project by using preliminary results from a demonstration project described in section that is underway at the time of the project. The schedules described in this subdivision shall be determined using the appropriate engineering analysis techniques and shall be approved by the chief engineer of the department. The temporary schedules described in this subsection shall be superseded by actual performance data as it is developed.

Section 79. (a) Notwithstanding section 77, the department shall design and construct a minimum of 4 PJCC Demonstration Projects per year for a minimum of 10 years, for the purpose of generating historical information that can be utilized in the life cycle cost analysis, with at least one of these projects annually using thin concrete overlay, which may require synthetic fiber reinforcement to extend the life and performance of the pavement.

(b) Demonstration projects shall be selected by the department in consultation with representatives of the Massachusetts Concrete and Aggregate Producers Association, and shall meet at least one of the following criteria:

1. Pavement designs intended to increase pavement life-expectancy in a manner that results in lower life cycle costs;

2. Pavement designs intended to improve performance, including but not limited to, friction, surface stress, reduction of noise, and improvement of ride quality; or

3. Pavement designs intended to compare the performance of various types of pavement.

(c) Each demonstration project shall include measurable goals and objectives for determining the success of that project, and the department shall measure the interim success of each project and prepare an annual report that compares the cost effectiveness and performance of the materials and designs to the departments standard selection process. The report shall be provided to the department, the speaker of the house of representatives, and the president of the senate.