Strategies to improve and preserve flexible pavements at intersections.

摘要

Many rural intersections originally constructed with thin untreated flexible base and hot mix or a two-course surface treatment experience severe pushing, shoving and rutting. These failures cause an extremely rough surface that can cause damage to small vehicles and potentially cause motorists to lose control of their vehicle. These distresses almost always result in complete failure of the existing pavement that must be repaired several times during the life of the roadway by maintenance forces. Pavement sections constructed with the same materials adjacent to the intersection perform adequately until the approach (approximately 150 ft in advance) of the intersection and in the intersection itself when the failures become apparent.;The mechanisms of intersection pavement failures and the best practices to minimize the failures at existing intersection pavements are discussed in this study. The outcome of this study is an expert system that can be used to reduce the frequency of maintenance needed at rural intersections with consideration of the life-cycle cost analysis.