Everyone is interested in extending the lifetime of highway pavements. What are the advantages of asphalt in this regard?
Well-designed and well-built asphalt pavements last many years. There are a number of case studies which support this conclusion. For instance, the asphalt portions of Interstate 90 in Washington State have been in place since their original construction up to 35 years ago with no rehabilitation for structural reasons. These pavements have only required maintenance and periodic replacement of their surface layer. The New Jersey DOT found the same to be true on 1-287 on a 26-year old 10-inch asphalt pavement; the original structure has remained intact and only a surface profiling followed by an overlay was necessary to restore the pavement. The entire New Jersey Turnpike is asphalt. It was built in 1951. They have never had a structural failure in the pavement. The only maintenance they’ve done is surface treatments and overlays. In a recent interview, the chief engineer for the Turnpike said that he expected the pavement to last another 50 years. It was very well designed and well-bui
