Investigating the Maintenance Cost of Rest Areas: A Case Study of Nevada

Highway Rest Areas are envisioned to provide an accessible space for rest and parking for travelers, especially those driving a long distance. In addition, modern highway Rest Areas provide many amenities to highway users, including wifi service, picnic tables, litter barrels, running water, public telephones, and sometimes even free coffee. Various studies were conducted in the domain of Rest Area facility design and their operating costs in different states; however, limited studies were conducted on the maintenance costs of these facilities. Therefore, this study's main objective is to compute the annual maintenance cost of Rest Areas in the state of Nevada. This study also analyzes the main cost categories of the maintenance works. The raw cost data of Nevada Rest Area maintenance from 1990 to 2012 were collected from the Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT). Results show that the maintenance cost fluctuated over the study period; the maintenance cost decreased from 1991 to 2004 and then increased until 2012. The primary cost categories of maintenance work are labor, equipment, and material costs. Among these, labor cost was the largest category with 56 percent of the total maintenance cost, followed by equipment cost and material cost. The findings of this study may help NDOT and other transportation agencies plan their budget for future Rest Area maintenance activities.