Maintenance

The combined effects of traffic loading and the environment will cause every pavement, no matter how well-designed/constructed to deteriorate over time.  Maintenance and rehabilitation are what we use to slow down or reset this deterioration process.  Maintenance actions, such as crack sealing, joint sealing, fog seals and patching help slow the rate of deterioration by identifying and addressing specific pavement deficiencies that contribute to overall deterioration.  Rehabilitation is the act of repairing portions of an existing pavement to reset the deterioration process.  For instance, removing and replacing the wearing course in a pavement provides new wearing course material on which the deterioration process begins anew.

This Module discusses the maintenance options for HMA and PCC pavement.

Suggested Reading

  • The Asphalt Institute. (1997). Asphalt in Pavement Maintenance, Manual Series No. 16. The Asphalt Institute. Lexington, KY.
  • The Asphalt Institute. (2000). Asphalt Overlays for Highway and Street Rehabilitation, Manual Series No. 17. The Asphalt Institute. Lexington, KY.
  • National Asphalt Pavement Association (NAPA). (1995). Thin Hot Mix Asphalt Surfacings, Informational Series 110. National Asphalt Pavement Association. Lanham, MD.

Publications Cited

  • Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). (June 1998). Long-Term Monitoring of Pavement Maintenance Materials Test Sites, Publication No. FHWA-RD-98-073. Office of Engineering Research and Development, Federal Highway Administration. McLean, VA.
  • Monismith, C.L. and Finn, F.N. (1984). National Cooperative Highway Research Program Synthesis of Highway Practice 116: Asphalt Overlay Design Procedures. Transportation Research Board, National Research Council. Washington, D.C.
  • University of California Institute of Transportation Studies (ITS). (2000). South Africa / United States Pavement Technology Workshop, Module 3: Pavement Structural Design. Seminar given from 20 – 23 March 2000 at the University of California Field Station. Richmond, CA.