Surface rutting of thin pavements and gravel roads under standard and reduced tire inflation pressures

2002 ◽  
Vol 29 (5) ◽  
pp. 679-691 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ahmed Shalaby ◽  
Alan Reggin
Keyword(s):  
Low Pressure ◽  
Lake Area ◽  
Thin Membrane ◽  
Heavy Vehicles ◽  
Tire Pressure ◽  
The Road ◽  
Low Volume Roads ◽  
Low Volume ◽  
Pavement Service Life ◽  
Partnership Program

In Canada, over 300 heavy vehicles equipped with central tire inflation systems are being used in forestry, mining, and grain hauling. Since 1995, Saskatchewan Highways and Transportation has permitted truck fleets to operate with primary highway axle loads on secondary highways under a partnership program. This paper reports on the comparison of rutting progression on an accelerated field experiment utilizing standard and reduced tire pressures. The experiment was conducted by Saskatchewan Highways and Transportation in the Big Quill Lake area of southern Saskatchewan. The vehicles used in the experiment were nine-axle B trains, eight-axle B trains, and six-axle semi-trailers. The statistical analysis of rutting data presented in the paper shows that reduced tire pressures can effectively extend the pavement service life of gravel and thin membrane surfaced roads. On the thin membrane pavements, there was less rutting on the low-pressure lane until twice as many vehicles had trafficked the road, and rutting was no worse on the low-pressure lane even when 10 times as many vehicles had trafficked the road. On the gravel surface, rut depth was lower on the low-pressure lane until twice as many trucks had trafficked that lane.Key words: rutting, pavement, central tire inflation, tire pressure, low-volume roads, unsurfaced roads.

Can Spring Load Restrictions on Low-Volume Roads be Shortened without Increasing Road Damage?

2005 ◽  
Vol 1913 (1) ◽  
pp. 126-136
Author(s):  
Maureen A. Kestler ◽  
Richard L. Berg ◽  
John E. Haddock
Keyword(s):  
Evaluation Model ◽  
Conventional Technique ◽  
Economic Losses ◽  
Heavy Vehicles ◽  
Tire Pressure ◽  
Local Economies ◽  
General Application ◽  
Low Volume Roads ◽  
Low Volume ◽  
Pavement Structures

Major highways are designed to withstand heavy vehicles and high volumes of traffic year round. However, low-volume roads in seasonal frost areas are highly susceptible to damage from trafficking by heavy vehicles during spring thaw. Conventional practice is to place partial or full spring load restrictions on low-volume roads during spring thaw. This practice reduces road damage significantly. However, companies whose livelihood depends on trucking can suffer major economic losses as they await the removal of load restrictions. Using reduced tire pressure constitutes a less conventional technique that can reduce springtime damage. Reducing tire pressure generally appears to be less effective than reducing load. Nevertheless, it does appear that the load restriction window can be shortened in duration by implementing a reduction in tire pressure for a few weeks, starting toward the latter part of the standard spring load restriction period. With a mechanistic pavement design and evaluation model for seasonal frost areas, a critical combination of load and tire pressure reduction was developed; it contributes to optimizing the balance between minimizing springtime road damage and minimizing disruption to local economies caused by load restrictions. This analysis constitutes the first step in the development of simplified, general application guidelines for shortening the springtime load restriction window for a variety of pavement structures.

Evaluation of the Long-Term Performance of Woven Geotextile Used between Base Course and Subgrade of a Paved Road

2019 ◽  
Vol 2673 (8) ◽  
pp. 310-321 ◽  
Author(s):  
Saad Ullah ◽  
Burak F. Tanyu ◽  
Erol F. Guler ◽  
Edward J. Hoppe ◽  
Emre Akmaz
Keyword(s):  
Transportation Network ◽  
Experimental Program ◽  
The Road ◽  
Low Volume Roads ◽  
Road Profile ◽  
Low Volume ◽  
Base Course ◽  
Virginia Department ◽  
Paved Road ◽  
Term Performance

The purpose of this research was to investigate the properties of the exhumed geotextile from a low-volume road on the Virginia Department of Transportation network. The exhumed geotextiles have been in service for 23 years, which provided an opportunity to evaluate the longevity of the materials as well as to make assessments of how it relates to the changes in material properties. During this investigation, subgrade and base course materials were also obtained from the same site and an experimental program was developed to evaluate the effectiveness of the exhumed geotextiles for separation, stabilization, and filtration for the base course thicknesses of 4, 6, and 8 in. The results from this study combined with the results from the previous studies conducted at the same site showed that when the geotextile is placed between the subgrade and base course, the thinner the pavement section, the more evident the effectiveness of the geotextile improvements. One important finding of this research was that the placement of a geotextile reduced the particle breakage caused by abrasion under the applied transient loads. This was observed as a stabilization effect of the geotextile inclusion. As a general conclusion, for low-volume roads with relatively thin pavement sections, properly selected geotextiles provide benefits for separating the subgrade and base course (minimizing pumping), filtering infiltrated or ground water, and stabilizing the road profile. These benefits become more apparent when the thickness of the base course is less than 8 in.

Reducing Damage to Low-Volume Roads by Using Trucks with Reduced Tire Pressures

1997 ◽  
Vol 1589 (1) ◽  
pp. 9-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maureen A. Kestler ◽  
Richard L. Berg ◽  
Thomas L. Moore
Keyword(s):  
Cross Sections ◽  
Design Procedure ◽  
Army Corps ◽  
Army Corps Of Engineers ◽  
Tire Pressure ◽  
Low Volume Roads ◽  
Minimal Damage ◽  
Allowable Load ◽  
Low Volume ◽  
Pavement Damage

Heavy-volume highways in seasonal frost areas are designed to resist the effects of spring thaw. However, timber access roads, county roads, and other low-volume roads with thin bituminous surfaces can be quite susceptible to pavement damage during midwinter- and spring-thaw periods. To reduce damage to low-volume roads, towns, cities, and states typically either post reductions in allowable load or completely prohibit hauling during damage-susceptible periods. Associated economic impact can be significant. To evaluate the effects of tire pressure on cumulative road damage, a mechanistic pavement design procedure developed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for use in seasonal frost areas was used on a matrix of tire pressures, low-volume pavement cross sections, and environmental conditions. A series of computer simulations showed ( a) trucks operating with conventional tire pressures can cause excessive damage, particularly in the form of cracking, to low-volume roads with thin bituminous surfaces during relatively short thaw periods; ( b) pavement damage could be reduced substantially by restricting hauling to trucks operating with reduced tire pressures; and ( c) there are “threshold” tire pressures under which only minimal damage occurs, even during critical spring thaw. These results could influence guidelines for hauling restrictions and, in turn, associated economics.

Nature and Effects of Low-Volume Roads in Botswana

2003 ◽  
Vol 1819 (1) ◽  
pp. 88-95 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bizzar B. Madzikigwa
Keyword(s):  
Rural Areas ◽  
Road Network ◽  
Good Condition ◽  
Construction Materials ◽  
Road Construction ◽  
Rapid Improvement ◽  
The Road ◽  
Low Volume Roads ◽  
Low Volume ◽  
Sand And Gravel

The road sector in Botswana continues to develop its road network throughout the country at a tremendous rate. When Botswana gained independence in 1966, it had only 10 km (16 mi) of bitumen road. By 1992 the total length of bituminous surfaced road reached 3500 km (2,175 mi) out of a total road network of 18 000 km (11,285 mi). These statistics clearly show that the majority of roads are not yet surfaced; these are low-volume roads that provide access to the rural areas where most of the country’s population is found, though in low density. In spite of the rapid improvement in the quality of the national road network in recent years, much remains to be done. In the early 1970s and early 1980s the rural roads unit was introduced in the Ministry of Works Transport and Communications, which was charged with the responsibility of design and construction of low-volume roads around the country in a bid to integrate the country’s road network. This unit was later disbanded in the 1990s, and all roads are improved through the conventional procurement system using private contractors. For these roads the justification of a surfacing project based on conventional economic return methods does not apply, and worse still, the road improvements have to compete with other amenities for the same limited resources. Three ministries in Botswana are responsible for roads: Ministry of Works Transport and Communications, Ministry of Local Government, and Ministry of Trade, Industry, Wildlife and Tourism. These ministries have different responsibilities for different roads within the country, and earth, sand, and gravel roads are found under the jurisdiction of each of the ministries. The major drawbacks concerning low-volume roads in Botswana are inadequate maintenance, poor road construction materials, and the environmental impacts of the roads. Since the budget and resources are inadequate to keep these roads in good condition, it would be prudent to find technological means that would improve the locally available road construction materials so as to minimize their effects on the environment and vehicle operating costs.

Network-Level Application of Roads Economic Decision Model in Nicaragua

2003 ◽  
Vol 1819 (1) ◽  
pp. 67-73 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rodrigo Archondo-Callao ◽  
Douglas Méndez Talavera ◽  
Lubina Cantarero Zeas
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Consumer Surplus ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
Improvement Program ◽  
Unpaved Roads ◽  
Economic Decision ◽  
The Road ◽  
Low Volume Roads ◽  
Low Volume ◽  
Poverty Indicators

A network-level application of the Roads Economic Decision (RED) model in Nicaragua is presented. The RED model was developed by the World Bank to improve the decision-making process for development and maintenance of low-volume roads. The model adopts the consumer surplus approach to estimate transport benefits and is customized to the characteristics of low-volume roads, such as the high uncertainty in the assessment of the model inputs, the difficulties in characterizing the road condition of unpaved roads, and the need for a comprehensive analysis of generated traffic to clearly define all accrued benefits. The network-level application was designed to define a rational maintenance and improvement program for a network of secondary unpaved roads with particular attention to the alternative of improving the network by surfacing roads with concrete blocks and to include in the decision-making process not only economic considerations but also poverty indicators and priorities perceived by local administrators.

Rethinking Traditional Approaches to Low-Volume Road Provision in Developing Countries

2003 ◽  
Vol 1819 (1) ◽  
pp. 74-80 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. I. Pinard ◽  
C. S. Gourley ◽  
P. A. K. Greening
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Rural Communities ◽  
The United States ◽  
The Road ◽  
Project Appraisal ◽  
Holistic Approaches ◽  
Low Volume Roads ◽  
Social And Economic Development ◽  
Low Volume ◽  
Traditional Approaches

Low-volume roads (LVRs) constitute an integral component of the road system in all developing countries, where their importance extends to all aspects of the social and economic development of rural communities. However, the original documentation relating to the provision of such roads is based in many respects on technology and research carried out in Europe and the United States some 30 to 40 years ago in environments very different from those prevailing in developing countries. As a result, these traditional approaches are often inappropriate for application in developing countries. Moreover, they tend to focus on the technical environment of road provision, with inadequate consideration of other interrelated environments that critically influence the types of LVRs that should be provided. As a result, a need for new, more holistic approaches to low-volume road provision has been engendered to satisfy the various needs of rural communities in a more sustainable manner. The objective of this discussion is to provide an insight into new, more holistic and sustainable approaches to the provision of LVRs in developing countries. Embodied in these new approaches is a need to rethink the old ways of providing such roads based on research and development work that has been carried out in these countries during the past 20 years. Examples include aspects of planning and project appraisal, geometric and pavement design, construction and drainage, and environmental issues, all of which need to be reconsidered in a more appropriate manner.

Techniques for Extending the Life of Low-Volume Roads in Seasonal Frost Areas

2003 ◽  
Vol 1819 (1) ◽  
pp. 275-284 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maureen A. Kestler
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Diagnostic Tools ◽  
Heavy Vehicles ◽  
Alternative Design ◽  
Low Volume Roads ◽  
Traffic Volumes ◽  
Low Volume ◽  
Tools And Techniques ◽  
Design Techniques

Major highways are designed to withstand heavy vehicles and high traffic volumes year round. However, low-volume roads (LVRs) in seasonal frost areas are extremely susceptible to damage from trafficking by heavy vehicles during spring thaw. As a result, the maintenance-free life of an LVR in a seasonal frost area averages less than half that of a similar road in a nonfrost area. This study serves as a practical primer on addressing thaw weakening of LVRs: it offers guidance for identifying frost-susceptible soils, summarizes methods used and currently undergoing research to determine when conditions are critical, and provides several solutions for avoiding the costly impact of spring thaw on LVRs. Diagnostic tools and recommended road-usage techniques are provided for existing roads; alternative design techniques are presented for new and reconstructed roads. Tools and techniques are applicable across much of Europe, North America, and Asia; some also apply to wet areas outside seasonal frost areas.

Turning Deteriorated Paved Roads Back into Gravel Roads: Sheer Lunacy or Sustainable Maintenance Policy?

2003 ◽  
Vol 1819 (1) ◽  
pp. 96-103 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jyri Mustonen ◽  
Janne Lintilä ◽  
Tauno Mäkiö
Keyword(s):  
Service Level ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Maintenance Policy ◽  
Poor Condition ◽  
The Road ◽  
Low Volume Roads ◽  
Gravel Roads ◽  
Minimum Requirements ◽  
Low Volume ◽  
Paved Road

In the late 1980s, many Finnish low-volume gravel roads were paved. This option was reasonable at that time because the price of bitumen was exceptionally low. No heavy structural rehabilitation was carried out on these roads before paving. It was assumed that these cheap and light pavements would last some 5 years. Now many of those roads have reached 10 to 15 years in age, still without any proper reconstruction, and are becoming increasingly deteriorated. For almost a decade now, the Finnish government has been reducing its spending on public roads. Maintenance and repair efforts have been concentrated on the main road network, and the minor network has deteriorated more and more. Calculations show that from the road agency’s point of view, upkeep of gravel roads is economically feasible compared with maintaining paved roads that are in poor condition. Therefore, road authorities have converted some of these paved low-volume roads back to gravel roads. In 2001, the Häme, Turku, and Uusimaa road districts agreed on common principles for these actions. Furthermore, they described minimum requirements for each case in which a paved road in poor condition was turned into a gravel road. Public opposition and political resistance were quite strong before these actions, since the gravel roads are seen as a decline of service level. People living along the road, however, generally admit that new gravel roads are more comfortable to drive on throughout the year than old deteriorated pavements. The road agency still has to focus on problems such as dust.

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