GoodRoads

GoodRoads develops pavement and roadside asset management technology for agencies responsible for maintaining road networks. The offering combines a vehicle-mounted data collection device, automated condition assessment, and web software for planning. The device can be affixed to a trash truck, a fleet vehicle, or a vehicle operated by GoodRoads itself, and records photographs and ride-quality data as it is driven across a network. Artificial intelligence then assesses asphalt and concrete road condition and produces ratings using established engineering standards, including Pavement Condition Index (PCI, ASTM D6433) and PASER.

The software layer lets users filter a network by PCI or PASER thresholds, view computer-vision-detected distresses such as potholes mapped to GPS locations and measured by surface area, and quantify alligator, block, longitudinal, and transverse cracking so that treatment costs can be applied to measured distress quantities rather than to whole road segments. An optimization engine selects roads and preservation treatments across a multi-year timeline subject to a capital budget constraint, and an interactive forecast model shows projected network average PCI under different funding scenarios and preservation rules (for example mill-and-overlay versus preventive crack sealing). Plans and attribute data can be exported to Excel summaries, GIS shapefiles, or municipal asset management formats for reporting to councils.

The company positions itself against generalist municipal software vendors, emphasizing that it was founded by a former Deputy City Engineer and that its tools are built around civil engineering standards. Its stated aim is to help local governments move from reactive maintenance toward data-backed capital improvement planning.

Founding story

Founder and CEO Chris Sunde began his career in California, where he spent five years establishing a small city's comprehensive pavement management program, a process that required inspecting every mile of road and rating it from 0 to 100 to decide which roads would be repaired. He concluded that insufficient funding for road maintenance was a problem common to cities nationwide, citing the American Society of Civil Engineers' "D" grade for the U.S. road system and a surface transportation funding gap exceeding $1 trillion through 2025. After moving to Charlotte, NC to design roads in the private sector, Sunde recruited co-founders Kyle Raub, Robert Mion, and Jim Rublee to start GoodRoads, aiming to address technology and community barriers in the road industry alongside the funding deficit. The name refers to the "Good Roads Campaign" launched in North Carolina in the early 1900s.

Business model

GoodRoads sells software and hardware-enabled inspection services to public agencies. Reported early on as a SaaS model in which cities pay per-device rental fees under licensing arrangements, the company also offers to handle data collection itself rather than requiring agencies to mount devices on their own vehicles.

Subscription/licensing revenue, described in early coverage as per-device rental fees paid by cities under a SaaS licensing model.

Traction

Published case studies and customers include the Town of Waxhaw, NC (described as a repeat customer), the Town of Matthews, NC, the City of Kenosha, WI, the City of Philadelphia, PA, and the Village of Carol Stream, IL. Earlier coverage described a bootstrapped company running a handful of pilots with small North Carolina city governments.

Latest developments

The company markets an automated inspection and multi-year capital planning platform with computer-vision distress detection, budget-constrained optimization, forecast modeling, and GIS/Excel export, and highlights a repeat engagement with the Town of Waxhaw, NC.