In the field a designer faces a lot of problems when the effectivenessvalues of overlay alternatives have to be assessed; especiallyif the existing pavement is cracked or jointed. Since the effectivenessof alternatives such as applying modified bitumen, fibres, stress-relievingsystems or reinforcing systems is site dependent, designers haveto consider more than one alternative in their analysis and implementthe optimum one. In the paper a design methodology is presentedwhich focusses on the reflection of cracks from an old surfaceinto and through an overlay. It is the result of a six-years projectat Delft University of Technology encompassing field measurements,laboratory testing, theoretical development and numerical simulations.Within the methodology the evaluation phase is build-up in sucha way that its results can be used directly for the design phase.