Maintenance of Unsealed Roads 2009

Gravel Road Maintenance Issues & Sustainable Solutions

Jointly prepared by

David Edge - Roading Manager, Hurunui District CouncilKen Avant - Road Projects Engineer, Waimakariri District Council

Carl Grabowski - Senior Transportation Engineer, MWH

Introduction• Management & Budgetary Constraints • Ratepayer, Road-user & Council Expectations• Levels of Service• Alternatives to Long-term Maintenance• Reliable “good old” Methods & Innovative Alternatives• Optional Sustainable Options• Questions

Management & Budgetary Constraints

• Sealing Roads = favoured option for Road Users & Councils(comfort, lower maintenance, etc).

• Although maintenance costs can be relatively high, LV Roadsdo not easily qualify for Seal Extension funding.

• Councils / Contractors constantly searching for methods to reduce maintenance needs.

• ‘Crab Bucket Syndrome’ & sharing of cross-boundary efficiencies.

• Sustainable roading research & workshops.

Ratepayer, Road-user & Council ExpectationsRatepayer Road-user Council

Relatively smooth - no corrugations / potholes, minimum ‘flying’ gravel.

Minimum corrugations & potholes - road user comfort, safety & traction.

Meet contractual specification, prompt & effective response.

Minimum dust nuisance (inhalation & household effects).

Minimum dust nuisance (visibility & vehicle effects).

Well bound running course, cost-effective dust suppressants, low environmental impacts.

Use of the shoulder / verge (landscaping, parking, etc).

Verge scrub-free / well maintained to improve visibility, emergency / rest stopping.

Contractual compliance (environmental mtce, shape, drainage, max road width maintained.

Stormwater mgmt within road corridor.

No ponding, rutting, rilling, potholing, aquaplaning.

Contractual drainage compliance - safety, asset maintenance & environmental.

Typical examples of rural heavies causing major damage to our unsealed roads:

Levels of Service

• Clear wording in documents

• ‘Total Management Systems’

• Good grader regimes

• Maintenance Contractors buy-in & investment

• Partnering agreements to share benefits / losses

• “Kaizen” Continuous improvement - not just BAU

Contract Issues

Alternatives to Long-term Maintenance

Foamed Bitumen stabilization of an unsealed road Kennedys Hill Road, Waimakariri District

• Steep, windy section• Layer thickness / fines• Drainage issues• Further maintenance• Ongoing monitoring

• Good finish• Cracking• Drainage• Surplus material• Some potholes• Maintenance

Otta Seals - Local & International Practice

• Single chip seal with prime & binder (13.2mm)thickness = ALD (8 - 10mm)

• Single Otta seal with binder & graded aggregate (no prime)thickness = minimum 16mm

• Double Otta seal with binder & graded aggregate (no prime)thickness = minimum 32mm

Type Additional Application Expected life (Years)Single Otta seal No sand cover Temp. seals &

maint. reseals5 - 6 (dependant on

surfacing type & quality)

Single Otta seal with sand cover

Fine sand in the sand cover

AADT ≤ 500 9 - 11

Crusher dust or river sand in the sand cover

10 - 12

Double Otta seal AADT > 500 12 - 15

Detailed info available in comprehensive guideline produced by the Norwegian Public Roads Administration (1999)

“A Guide to the Use of Otta Seals”

Mayes Rd, HDC (Nov. 2004)• AADT ≤ 500• Unsuitable materials• Good finish & drainage• ‘Life Cycle’ cost benefits• No maintenance

• Keddell Road, Central Otago DC• Mayes Road, Hurunui DC• Church Road, Dunedin CC• Sinclair Road, Southland DC• Peroa Road, Gisborne DC

Fulton Hogan have done several trials

Otta Seal - Proposed Bramleys Road application (WDC)

Issues• Dust nuisance• Rutting & potholes• Drainage

Choice Influences• Regular complaints• Good structure / shape• Low volume (117/day)• Drainage - minor work

Otta Seal - International Practice

International• Norway / Sweden / Iceland • Kenya / Botswana / Zimbabwe / SA• Bangladesh / Australia

Single Otta seal with sand cover seal in Botswana“beds down” after a few months in service (a) and (b),

and still looks good after 9 years in service (c).

Single Otta seal in Bangladeshaggregate spread by hand (a), compacted with loaded trucks (b), “beds down” and looks good after 2 years in service (c).

Otta seals in Kenya (a) and (b) and South Africa (c) and (d) using natural quartzitic and laterite aggregates.

Reliable “good old” Methods & Innovative Alternatives

Issues with reliable “good old” methods

• ‘Smoothing’ vs. Rip & Reshape• TTM during maintenance operations• Heavy vehicles & gravel loss• Raised shoulder syndrome

Innovative AlternativesOvergrown shoulder - reclaiming road width

• Consider landowner concerns - metal-wash, mowing, etc.• Tractor mounted shoulder trimming - soil / vegetation build-up on

shoulder trimmed back to regain metal width (Killiner Contracting, NZ)

Raised shoulder syndromeTractor or grader mounted shoulder reclaimer available to eliminate

soil / gravel build-up on shoulder - loosened and swept off or re-used.“All American Disk” - Doyle Inc, Minnesota, USA“Tiger Claw” - Agriquip Ltd, New Plymouth, NZ

Killiner Contracting, NZ

Shoulder reclaiming available locally (Killiner Contracting, NZ)• Trialed in various N-Island districts• Potential for minimum 20km/day (both sides) @ approx. $0.05/m• Reclaims between 50 - 100m3 material (mostly metal) / side / km• TLA’s in USA - annual cycle in maintenance contracts

Pneumatic (tyred) roller mounted on rear of grader (locally available - Walk ‘n’ Roll International Ltd, Auckland) and various blade attachment options (used by Sicon / SDC) can make rural road maintenance a little easier.

Towed machinery used in USA to pulverize gravel and sod windrows into re-usable material on unsealed roads.

Optional Sustainable Solutions

Cost / benefit comparison of options being investigated as alternatives to Grader maintenance

• Reclaimed metal + Ballast + Cement stabilisation

• Reclaimed metal + Otta seal

• Re-metalling + Otta seal

• Stabilisation (Cement / FB) + Seal (Otta / Chip)

• AWT (Full reconstruction + Chip seal)

Useful References / Acknowledgements• “A Guide to the Use of Otta Seals” - Norwegian Public Roads Administration• “Tractor-Mounted Shoulder Reclaimer - Works Well and Saves Money” -

US Roads, Road Management Journal• “A Ditch in Time” - Rural Home Technologies, Road/Driveway Maintenance• “Gravel Roads: Maintenance & Design Manual - Section V: Innovations” -

US Environmental Protection Agency• “Unsealed Roads are Sustainable” - 1997 IPENZ Conference (Alan Ferry) • “Replacing Waste Oil as a Dust Minimisation Technique” - Jeff Waters (FH)

2007 LV Roads W/shop Presentation• “The All American Disk” - Doyle Inc. (video clip on Google / YouTube)• “Tiger Claw” marketing material supplied by Richard Capper, Agriquip

Questions?

Thank You

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