HomeMy WebLinkAbout0163.094Febr~ary 24~ 1994
THE HONORABLE CITY COUNCIL
palo Alto~ California
~ement Maintenance Manag~ment Prog~
Members cf the Co~~cil~
Report in Br:i.ef
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This is an infortUOi.tional report on t.he status of the anntial
pavement maintenance program. No Cour,cil action is required at
this cime.
This report diacusees proposed :;:lew iuitiacives in the manner and
type of pavement maintenance to be performed. Staff is proposing
to add slurry seal surface coating work to this year's contract
street maintenance work, in addition to the recent practice of
resurfacing wi.tb asphalti.c concrete. This ';Iiill enable a 150
percent increase {2 l/2 times as much) in the area of streets to
receive maintenance treatment by contract this year, as compared to
or..ly overlaying within the same budget. Additionally~ the street
maintenance and sidewalk repair prograJtlS will be integrated to
perform curb, gutter, driveway and sidewalk repairs on the streets
which are reaurfaced~ This will provide the residents on these
streets with a one time comprehensive repair project and min~m~ze
disruption.
This item ~ill return to Council when the construction contract is
recommended for award in April.
Background
Up to 1986~ the City incorporated overlays and slurry seals~ plus
an oc.caBional chip seal, in the paveme.nt maintenance program. From
1986 to last year;s program, only overlays were performed to take
advantage of matching State funding. Due to ~hrinking matching
funds and a need to address preventive maintenance for surface wear
conditions, starf is re-incorporating surface r:reatment in thi.6
year's paveme:1t maintenance program. Please refer to Attachment "A
far a brief tecr~ical description of the City's Pavement
Maintenance Management program.
Discussion
CURRENT PROGRA."'f: This year' B pavement maint.enance program not only
involves overlaying streets, but includes two additional items, i.
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e., slurry seal and a total ir.tegrated street repair concept:
("initiated t.his year) fOr streets that are receiving an asphalt
overlay~ Approximately 13 lane miles of streets will receive an
application of slurry seal to seal the surface of the street froro
water intrusion and provide a ne .... wearing surface at a cost of
approximately $200 1 COO. Approximately 6"5 lane miles of streets
will be oyerlayed this year at. a cost of approximately $900,000.
Staff is initiating an integrated street repair concept th~s year.
Under the int.egrated street repair conceptr when streets are
overlayed, all curb. ~~tter, driveway and sidewalk adjoining the
street that meet the City's replacement policy will be repaired and
curb ramps installed. Therefore~ the street will receive a one
time compreheneive repair project, minimizing disru.ption to the
residents along the street. CUrrently, separate CIPs proyide street .
.overlays for streets needing structural strengthening, sidewalk
repairs foY sidewalks that exceed the City's replacement criteria
and curb ~~d gutter repairs for curb and gutter tha~ impair storm
water flows. This concept will not eliminate the gep~rate curb,
gutter and sidewalk repaire CIPs, but will be done in coordination
with, ~~d as supplement to them. A portion of the funding for the
sidewalk replacement CIP and Storm Drainage Utility (curb a!ld
~~tter replacement) will be used in ~ombination with the
resurfacing fund. In order to create a jOintly funded integxated
street repair project containing elements of both CIPs.
In addition to the aboVe progratr,. staff is initiating another
program to remove asphalt overlays from concrete streets that have
been overlayed. The City started overlaying concrete streets in
the early 1950's. Though expedient in the short run. in the long
run successive overlays of concrete streecs eventually fill in
curbs a..'F}d cause drainage problems. While aome concrete st.reets are
economically unrecoverable due to numerous structural failures.
t:here are many concrete streets that were overlayed to correct
minor flaws or to smooth the s\.iZ-face of the street. These streets
can be returned to concrete. surface streets by virtue of new
technology and equipment for grinding the surface of the streets to
a B~th finish. Embarcadero Road (off ramp) between High Street
and Alma Street" is the firBit street to be cho!;len for this
remediation work and is included in this year' 5 prO']ram. The
experience gained from this year will determine the future course
of action for other concrete streets.
PILOT PROJeCT: In the past, chip seals have had limited
application due to the problems of loose rock chips and dU9t:.
However. new materials are available whi.:-h effectively eliminate
these problems. To determine if these chips seals are acceptable.
staff will conduct a pilot project this fall involving placement of
two different types of chip seals, i. e .• Polymer Based Asphalt
chip seal and Crumb Rubber chip seal, on various streets. The
prcj ect will monitor cost, appearance, applicabilitYI resistance to
wo;ar, neighborhood disrupt.ion and public acceptance for the t'Wo
types of chip seal. If results are favorable, these chip ae~ls
will be added to the pavement maintenance program and used where
app~icahle. Please refer to Attachmem: A for fUrther discussion on
chip seals.
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Economics/Recycling
The a.ddition of a.sphalt surface treac.rnents to the Clr.nual pavemer~t
program greatly increae.es the number of streets that recei-..re
remedial treatment. While an asphalt surface treatment, such as
slurry seal~ does not reatore the str,Jctural capacity of the
s~~et. a surface treatment, applied at the right time, can extend
the life of the existing street and therefore delay or eliminate
the need for an ov~rlay. Decreasing the amount of asphalt overlays
reduces the consumption of natural materials and energy and reduces
waste by source reduction. Also, the Crumb Rubber chip seal
utilizes rubbe= from recycled tires.
RWespect~ted'
A. CARLSON
nior Engineer
~baJ...t",
"EORGE BAGDON
Assistant Director of Public Works
GLENN S. ROBERTS
Director of Public Works
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BERNARD M. S11W,JN'{
Assistant City Manager
Attac~~ent A -Pavemen~ Maintenance Management Program
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I
I ATTACHMENT A
PAV§:.MENI MAHITENANe'E MANAG&foP...NT PROGRAM
A proficient pavement maintenance program provides a sound basis
for prolonging the economic life of City streets and is a pre
qualifier for some State and Federal funding. In 1981. the Public
Works Department instituted a computerized Pavement Maintenance
Management program to provide a systemized method to identify the
condition of City streets, recommend remedial action and pl.-ioritize
the list of candidate streets.
All City Etreete are reviewed every two years and are rated baaed
on the following indicators of wear and stro2!Ss.
1. Alligator cracking. an indicator of st~ctural pavement
failure ..
~. Block cracking, an indicator of oxidation and brittle asphalt
leading to structural pavernsnt failure. and
3. Surfacing raveling, and indicato:r of incipient oxidation and
loes of surface asphalt.
Priority listings al.'e established by a formula incol.-porating the
above indicators pIllS traffic volume. An asphalt overlay is
specified for street.s needing atructul:al strengthening and an
asphalt surface treatment is specified for streets showing surface
distress. Separat.e lists of candidates are established for asphal t
overlay and asphalt surface treatment.
Each year candidate streets are taken from the priority lists to
matcb available funds from the gas tax and users utility tax funds.
Before the lists are finali2ed~ other City Departments are
conaulted for conflicts with their construction projects, such a,s
utility repair ~~d replacements. Candidates are delayed to avoid
conflicts with construction projects scheduled up to three years in
the future. Candidates effected by projects scheduled more that
three years in the future are reviewed on a case by cas~ basis.
ASPH?.LTOVERLAY
Asph~lt o'.rerlays are placed when a pavement requires etruct· .... ral
upgrading. The structural integrity of an asphalt pavement can be
compromised by several factors such as an wlanticipated increase in
truck or bus traffic, moisture from the ground or through cracks in
the pavement~ lack of periodic maintenance for failures and surface
wear, utility trenches or time. A well timed overlay can recapture
the structural integrity of the pavement. If the street is not
properly maintained, street reconstruction will be necessary.
Currently. streets needir.g structural upgrading are pa-"ed la7ith an
1·1/2 inch minimum thick.~ess asphalt overlay with a pavement fabric
interlayer membrane to reduce reflective cracking. Thicker
overlays are ?laced if needed. All base failures are repaired and
cracks exceeding lis inch are sealed with asphalt. For cracks
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exceed1ng 1/4 inch. a fabric membrane is placed cver the crack.
Trees are trimmed by professional t.ree trimmers prior to the
overlay operations. The cost of an 1-1/2 inch overlay is
approximately $1.00 per sq. ft.
ASPHAI.T SURFACE 'I'REA'I'MENT~
The first evidence of stress ir~ a street is surface raveling and
Bupe~ficial cracks. This stress is cauge~ by traffic, moisture and
oxidation of the asphal t . The surface of t.he asphal t becomes
brittle, wears off ar.d cracks. If left unattended. the raveling
decreases the thickness of t.he asphalt pavement allowin.g water to
enter; and the cra.cks extend do·ofIli'!l. through the depth of the asphalt
pavement and the structural capability of the street becomes
compromised. A Bi.!rface treatment seals t.he surfa-:-e from oxidation
and moisture and fills in t.he minor cracks. Surface treatlT',entl9
have a life of up to 10 years depending upon the t~e of seal and
type and amount of t.raffic. The cost of a surface treatment varies
from 15 to 40 cents per sq. it. depending on the type of treatment.
'!'ypically~ these streets receiving a seal do not contain b~se
failures and have only minor cracking.
There are two types of seal being considered for use by staff, i.
e.~ slurry seal and chip seal. Slurry seal can be applied at three
different rates· Each rate results in a different aggregate size
and thickness of slurry seal. The thickest application is
approximately 1/4 inch thick. The pros for slurry seal are ease of
application, minor disruption to property owners and visual
appearance of the final product. The con is that slurry seal is
not very fleXible and will reflect cracks over time. Slurry seals
are proposed for the current year and have been exclusively used in
the past by the City.
The chip seal most used is applied by spraying a layer of asphalt
emulsion on the road, immediatel}~ spreading a layer of rock chips
over the asphalt emulsion and rolling the rock chips with a steel
dr.J.m compactor. This standard chip seal provides the shortest
street closure. time of the seals but h36 the inherent problems of
loose rock chips and dust from the rock and therefore has not been
used by staff.
However, tnere are two different types of chip seals which
elirr.inates these problems. The two types of chip seal being
considered for use by staff are Polymer Based Asphalt (PBA) chip
seal and Crumb Rubber chip seal. The PBA and Crumb Rubber chip
seals are similar looking and are similarly applied. These chip
seals are applied hot -with the rock mixed ..,ith the asphalt and
because of the application, there are no loose rock chips and d'..lst
~ith this chip seal. However, due to the additives~ PBA or Crumb
Rubber, the applications are very sens_ltive to temperature and
other environmental conditions. Due to the PBA and Cr~mb Rubber
additives these chip seals remain flexible longer that the standard
chip seal and slurry seal. However, these additive roughly double
the coat of the standard chip seal.
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Staff pr~BeB to seal several 5~reets with PBA and Crumb Rubber
chip seals later this year through the Santa Clara County pavem~nt
progr~s~ The City will contract with the Co~~ty to perform the
work~ The County chip seals throughout the County every year and
will inc~rporate our streets in with their program. Staff will
monitor the applications. complaintB, c~sts and quality of product
in place. The results will dictate the ~xtent to which these chip
Beals will be ~8ed in the future.
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