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The challenge currently facing the agencies responsible for winter road maintenance is to guarantee the safety levels of our roads in a way that is more efficient and environmentally responsible. To do so, they must implement new forms of technology able to monitor and predict the state of the pavement the entire length of the highway, and thereby decide what preventive measures (such as spreading salt) are the most appropriate to each section of road. This article describes the fundamental assessment principles and the implementation of two optical sensor prototypes, installed on-board on maintenance vehicles and designed to take remote measurements of the most relevant local parameters for winter road conditions: the amount of water (and/or ice) and saline residue on the pavement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]