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Best practices for long-life pavement from design and construction to preservation and maintenance.

The overlaying of concrete on asphalt, composite or old concrete pavements provides an environmentally friendly, long-lasting and cost-effective rehabilitation pavement solution.

As with any built infrastructure, good construction is key to ensuring a concrete pavement structure performs to expectations. Construction activities for concrete pavements can range from simple, hand-placement fixed form practices, to highly sophisticated operations with fully automated equipment.

Where conventional concrete pavements are concerned, there are three subtypes of pavement, which vary in terms of steel reinforcement requirements.

Concrete pavement thickness design methods have and continue to evolve across North America, as new innovations in cement manufacturing, concrete mix design, and the incorporation of additives and fibres are constantly under development, providing improved performance and durability in thinner pavement sections.

Construction costs are regionally variable and fluctuate over time according to a variety of economic factors (cost of raw materials, equipment, labour, etc.). Though every project should be evaluated on a case-by-case basis, concrete highways have an excellent track record as a cost-effective investment.

Cement based soil-cement, also known as Engineered Soils, was first used in 1935. Since that time, Portland cement has been used to stabilize soils and aggregates for pavement applications on thousands of kilometres of roadway all over the world.

Interlocking concrete pavement (ICP) pavers are a versatile, multi-purpose pavement alternative that are becoming a popular solution across many areas in Canada.

Concrete is hard, rigid and durable—it is the traditional material of choice for constructing buildings, bridges and other types of infrastructure. For the same reasons, concrete is also an excellent choice for roads.

In addition to its long-term durability and reduced maintenance, concrete offers several other sustainable benefits over its lifecycle.

Life-cycle cost analysis (LCCA) is a tool to determine the most cost-effective option among different competing alternatives to purchase, own, operate, maintain and, finally, dispose of an object or process, when each is equally appropriate to be implemented on technical grounds.

Pervious concrete is a porous medium that allows storm water to drain from the surface to the underlying base and soil structures.

Precast concrete pavements are a relatively new type of pavement system slowly gaining popularity in North America because of its prefabricated, modular nature, which allows for expedited construction schedules over asphalt and cast-in-place concrete.

Determining the timing of preservation or rehabilitation activities over the service life of a pavement is critical to ensuring a pavement meets or exceeds its expected performance according to its design.

Just as building designs are increasingly focused on resilient performance against the threats of climate change, so too is core public infrastructure adapting with increased risks of flooding, temperature extremes and freeze-thaw swings.

Roller Compacted Concrete (RCC) is a durable, economical and sustainable pavement solution, which gets its name from the heavy vibratory and rubber-tired rollers used to compact its final form.

Proven resilience