A well-established approach to the computation of
rut depths in pavements is to conduct an elastic stress
analysis and then to separately determine the vertical
plastic strain distribution through the structure. Summation
of these strains with depth yields the surface
deformation, which is the principal design criterion.
This approach has recently been incorporated into the
new Mechanistic-Empirical Pavement Design Guide
in the USA, (ARA, 2006).