caltrans flexible pavement design software

#Caltrans flexible pavement design software full#

Then Coffman Specialties (Segment Five) and Security Paving (Segment Four), via contracts totaling $151,000,000, broke ground on both segments in July 2019. These segments were fully reconstructed with CRCP. The first three segments began construction in early 2016, with Segments One and Two completed in 2017 and Segment Three in 2018. The projects took place between May 2015 and December 2019 with the work divided into five segments.

#Caltrans flexible pavement design software full#

It was logically concluded that the issues with poor ride quality, third-stage cracking, and frequent maintenance required the pavement to undergo a full rehabilitation of the existing 8.4”-thick JPCP. “Some of the cracks were at Stage 3, close to failure – it’s the worst stage of cracking,” said Oreiro. Further repair work would increase personnel exposure to traffic and also inconvenience the public. Over the years, to extend the life of the mainline pavement, isolated concrete panels were replaced and the roadway was diamond ground to improve ride quality, but after 50 years of service, Caltrans determined that continuing repairs would result in diminishing returns. Caltrans noted that the original JPCP has become distressed and asphalt shoulders have been repeatedly sealed and repaired. The aging concrete pavement in this section is impacted by a high percentage of truck volume at 26.1%, and further stressed by the harsh climatic conditions typical of the southwest desert. I-8 covers 287 miles, connecting San Diego to Arizona, with the Imperial County section constructed during the late 1960s and early 1970s.

The life span for CRCP pavement may be up to 70 years, far exceeding current road design. The result is a continuous, smooth-riding surface capable of withstanding the heaviest traffic loads and the most adverse environmental conditions. CRCP naturally forms tight transverse cracks to evenly transfer loads.

Oreiro praised Mehdi Parvini, Caltrans Senior Transportation Engineer, who championed the use of a CRCP overlay for the I-8 project. It’s pretty much maintenance-free as there are no lateral joints that we have to reseal periodically.” The overlay is a test of the longevity of concrete pavement. We usually design our concrete projects for a 40-year lifespan. A CRCP overlay had previously been done in Michigan, along with some additional states in the central U.S. County, but for this many miles and this amount of concrete, this is the biggest. “This was the first big CRCP overlay job in the state,” said Michael Oreiro, P.E., Caltrans Project Engineer for Sections Four and Five, District 11. For Segments Four and Five of the work, Continuously Reinforced Concrete Pavement (CRCP) overlays were placed on top of the existing 50-year-old, un-doweled, jointed plain concrete pavements – JPCP. To reconstruct and rehabilitate 48 mainline miles of Interstate 8 in the eastern part of the Imperial Valley, Caltrans utilized a very innovative approach. Reuse enhances sustainability with more than 200,000 cubic yards of roadway recycled onsite.