A volunteer team from three asphalt industry groups has launched a digital storehouse of paving treatment options that can be mixed and matched to the specific conditions of road segments needing work.
The site, RoadResource.org, compiles relevant information with a standardized technical menu of 18 pavement preservation, recycling and emulsion treatments alongside network comparison calculators. Users can choose, for example, the materials that compose sections of the pavement, the type of road and the specific problem at hand. A variety of possible treatments are listed on the site, along with links to find local contractors.
Users also can click on a photo in a gallery of a stretch of road with a certain kind of pavement condition. A box pops up with a list of possible treatment options, e.g., various types of sealants, milling treatments or recycling choices.
The site was created by members of the Preservation and Recycling Alliance, comprising of leaders of the Asphalt Emulsion Manufacturers Association, the International Slurry Surfacing Association and the Asphalt Recycling & Reclaiming Association. Development took about 18 months, says Dan Patenaude, sales and marketing manager for Sealcoating Inc., and a former public works director. “The driving force behind the site is that while information exists among the various resources, it’s disjointed. Surveyed agencies said, ‘We’re busy and can’t chase information all over the place.’”
The site provides lifecycle and sustainability pavement calculators and input from public and private industry experts. Volunteers also go out and survey actual pavement cases for verification, says Patenaude. “We would never recommend a treatment if it doesn’t seem fit for the road we see.”
The emphasis is not on “worst first”—prioritizing only the worst segments of road in a system—but on system-wide preventative maintenance, he says. The focus is on getting as close to a 40-year pavement life as possible with minimum cost.
Patenaude cautions that the data are based on nationwide averages, since every region varies according to weather, labor climate and availability of pavement materials. “We need more case studies and success stories” for the site, he says.
