Pavement Management Program

Introduction

In 2011, the Town of Plymouth developed a Pavement Management Program for its Town roadways. This comprehensive study was undertaken to develop an extensive roadway database evaluating actual roadway infrastructure conditions in Plymouth that will allow for the development of a prioritized list of roadways and improvements. The final product is a dynamic Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) aiming to improve the Town’s roadway network.

In general, pavement management is based on the theory of predicting roadway deterioration over time. This theory allows pavement managers to perform timely maintenance designed to extend the roadway’s life and avoid more costly and extensive structural repairs. A key aspect of pavement management is the recognition that roadways deteriorate in an accelerated fashion at specific times in the roadway lifecycle. Understanding this concept allows opportune decisions that yield the most cost-effective results. Please refer to the Construction Projects page for a list of past and current roadway improvement projects.

Repair Alternatives

The Town of Plymouth has developed, and will continue to develop a menu of repair strategies (i.e. Crack Sealing, Rubber Chip Seal, Micro-surface, HMA Overlay, Mill & Overlay, Roadway Reclamation and Full Depth Reconstruction) and associated costs for consideration in the capital planning process.

Crack Seal

A process which involves clearing cracks of dirt and debris then filling the cracks with A highly elastic material (usually A hot pour highly polymer modified asphalt). Crack sealing prevents moisture from accessing the pavement structure and causing further deterioration to the roadway.

Rubber Chip Seal

This method of roadway preservation is a hot spray application of 20% asphalt-rubber followed by a layer of embedded aggregate.   This will provide a protective wearing surface that helps stop pavement raveling, seal minor cracks, and slows down the further deterioration of the roadway.  This will help prolong the life of the existing roadway.