**7. Conclusions**

Iraq's roadways management system has to be thoroughly examined and modified. There is currently no defined management agenda in place for gathering data and developing strategies for highway monitoring, maintenance, and service. In Iraq, the risk of accidents is relatively high; according to WHO estimates from 2002, the fatality rate is between 19 and 28 per 100,000 people. This is in addition to the absence of safety measures such as speed limits and other restrictions that apply to road users. The results of the questionnaire survey clearly demonstrated the drivers' unhappiness with the expressway's existing operating performance and quality. As a

*Development of Highways Management Systems in Iraq DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.105852*

result, they declare their willingness to pay fees if the expressway's condition is improved. The model designed for judging expressway quality based on the primary and secondary criteria was based on the questionnaire responses. (Eq. 1). The developed road quality equation was modified according to the relative impact of each criterion on the road quality (Eq. 2).

On a 9-level scale, applying this equation to the highway in its current state (Eq. 4) yielded a 3.7 quality standard. The figure is quite close to the minimum of 3.5 (Eq. 3) that experts have set as the limit beyond which maintenance must be performed. According to traffic volume records, the expressway typically traffic more than 10,000 cars every day, half of which are trucks transporting merchandise from Basra port to other Iraqi provinces. A Tolling Road System (TRS) has been proposed for the goal of improving highway management and societal satisfaction, as well as the existence of a legal foundation. The AHP program was used to compare alternatives and, as a result, to pick the best ones by evaluating their application to primary and secondary standards. The results showed that the alternative of implementing the TRS was supported by 75%.

## **8. Recommendations**

It's critical to have a permanent system for collecting data and performing surveys along the roadway on a regular basis. This would guarantee that data is available for the implementation of successful maintenance plans. When the necessary data is available, it is useful to expand the usage of the generated road quality model by applying it to additional sections. More case studies are needed to determine the efficacy and practicality of imposing taxes on road users, particularly from a social and economic standpoint.
