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Asphalt roads offer superior value. 

First, asphalt’s life-cycle costs are low, in part because the structure of asphalt pavement doesn’t have to be replaced. Well-maintained asphalt roads can last indefinitely and never need to be reconstructed. Further, it’s recently been shown that new asphalt pavements last 18 years on average without maintenance.1 When maintenance is required, Thinlays, the industry's foremost pavement preservation method, extend the life of an asphalt pavement, providing the best use of materials and money in appropriate applications. 

In addition, there are asphalt contractors in every community, so competitive bidding ensures road owners get the best price for their project. Asphalt pavements are quick to construct and maintain, minimizing disruption for drivers and local businesses.

Thinlays

With asphalt pavements, efficiency can be quickly restored through simple maintenance or preservation methods such as Thinlays, which extend the life of an asphalt pavement and is an effective use of materials and money. Traffic congestion can be minimized by increasing travel lanes with quick-to-construct asphalt pavements. Staged construction allows for roads to be built to handle today’s traffic volumes and then upgraded over time to meet changing traffic patterns and loads.

Perpetual Pavements

Asphalt’s value is also demonstrated in its low life-cycle costs. It’s recently been shown that new asphalt pavements last 18 years on average without maintenance.4  In addition, the design and construction of Perpetual Asphalt Pavement account for the structural needs of the roadway in the future, allowing for routine maintenance to create a like-new pavement that never needs to be replaced.5 By contrast, when a concrete pavement reaches the end of its useful life, it must undergo expensive, time-consuming replacement from the base up.

  1. Pavement Lessons from the 50-Year-Old Interstate Highway System: California, Oregon, and Washington. Transportation Research Board. 2007.
  2. Pavement Smoothness Index Relationships, Final Report. Federal Highway Administration. 2002.
  3. TRIP. Key Facts About America's Surface Transportation System and Federal Funding. September 2018. 
  4. Robbins, M.M., & N.H. Tran (2018). Review of Initial Service Life Determination in Life Cycle Cost analysis (LCCA) Procedures and in Practice (NCAT Report 18-02). National Center for Asphalt Technology, Auburn, Alabama.
  5. Pavement Interactive. "Perpetual Pavements", August 2007.