Abstract:
The concept of a digital twin has become a popular research topic over the past ten years
and has been identified as a top potential emerging technology for infrastructure projects.
Digital twins are commonly associated with projects that have origins in Building
Information Modelling (BIM) and are considered to represent the ultimate state of the asset
information systems that are produced as part of the design and construction process in
the built environment. Less attention has been paid to horizontal infrastructure than to
buildings, in particular to roads. The digital twin enables integrated management and use
of dynamic quantitative, geometric, spatial and documentation information, supporting
better road asset management decision making. This paper (a) proposes a conceptual
framework for digital twins to support better decision making in the operation of road
infrastructure, and (b) discusses how digital twins support and integrate the information
and processes required in road management standards. The proposed conceptual
framework for digital twins identifies and contextualises the various core components of a
digital twin, linking them into a concise system of asset-centric information management
processes. The conceptual framework serves as a reference for the authors of projectspecific implementation plans to create digital twins of road infrastructure.
