Faulting For traditional JPCP (Jointed Plain Concrete Pavements) rigid pavements, joint faulting (characterized by different slab elevations) is a critical measure of pavement distress. Faulting is an indicator of erosion or fatigue of the layers beneath the slab and reflects a failure of the load-transfer ability of the pavement between adjacent slabs. Faulting is associated with increased roughness and will be reflected in International Roughness Index measurements.
Punchouts For Continuously Reinforced Concrete Pavements (CRCP) rigid pavements (those built without expansion/contraction joints), fatigue damage at the top of the slab is often measured by punchouts, which occur when the close spacing of transverse cracks cause in high tensile stresses that result in portions of the slab being broken into pieces. Punchouts are associated with increased roughness and are reflected in International Roughness Index measurements.