Comparison of Life-Cycle Maintenance and Rehabilitation Costs for Typical Pavement Systems
The purpose of this report is to present a comparison of maintenance costs for typical pavement systems in public right-of-way areas. Typical Pavement Type and Layers are compared.
Pavement Maintenance and Rehab Costs Unit costs for maintenance and rehabilitation are provided for each pavement type. The unit costs were developed from bid information from medium to large municipalities across Canada and benchmarked with several U.S. municipalities, contractor estimates and private sector developers. The unit costs represent the whole cost to complete the maintenance and rehabilitation activity, including labor, equipment, and materials.
Pavement Maintenance and Rehab Plans
Common Maintenance and Rehabilitation Activities Interlocking Concrete Pavement • • •
Replace Cracked or Worn Pavers Reset Pavers Joint Sand Replenishment
It is important to understand the expected pavement performance and costs for the entire life cycle of the pavement. The overall costs and value need to be determined over many years to effectively consider the different options in terms of pavement type, design life, and future maintenance and rehabilitation. Overall costs are divided into initial or typically capital costs and future or typically operational costs. Initial costs are typically covered by specific capital budgets and, in the municipal environment, in many cases by developers who design and construct the roadway infrastructure to municipal specifications. Therefore, for the purpose of this analysis, only future operational costs are included in the LCCA.
Two common categories of pavement are considered here: •
Low Volume Roads/Parking Areas - A pavement built for its appropriate traffic and environmental conditions will have a reasonable service life while providing a functional, safe platform for the traveling public.
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Sidewalks/Recreational Trails - While sidewalks can be considered as pavement, they are not typically subjected to a formal pavement structural design. Municipal agencies across North America have developed “typical” thickness designs based on their experience with past performance of sidewalks in their jurisdictions.
Asphalt Concrete • • • • •
Rout and Seal Spot Repair Full-Depth Base Repair Mill AC Resurface AC
Concrete • • • • • •
Re-seal Joints Partial Depth Concrete Repair Full Depth Concrete Repair Sidewalk Concrete Panel Replacement Concrete Edge Grinding Slab Jacking
Pavement System Life-Cycle Cost Comparisons Roadway/Parking Area Maintenance and Rehabilitation
Sidewalk/Recreational Trail Maintenance and Rehabilitation
The maintenance and rehabilitation plans outlined in this comparison were used in conjunction with typical municipal costs and a discount rate of 4 percent to develop the comparison of maintenance and rehabilitation costs.
maintenance and operation costs for ICP on a concrete base are 3 percent lower than for PCC on an aggregate base. For AC on aggregate base the cost is 60 percent lower compared to PCC on an aggregate base. The higher costs for PCC on an aggregate base and ICP on a concrete base are primarily due to the cost of concrete slab replacements and undersealing to address settlements and distortions.
For roads and parking areas, the 50-year life-cycle maintenance costs for ICP on an aggregate base are 19 percent lower than for AC on an aggregate base. The life-cycle maintenance costs for ICP on a concrete base are 5 percent higher than for AC on an aggregate base. The life-cycle maintenance costs for PCC on an aggregate base are 46 percent less than for AC on an aggregate base. The higher cost for ICP on a concrete base is primarily due to the cost of concrete slab replacements. For sidewalk and recreational trail areas, the 40year maintenance and operations costs for ICP on an aggregate base are 50 percent less than for PCC on an aggregate base. The life cycle
Interlocking concrete pavers are an important element for Complete Streets. They are sustainable, they look better and they have proven performance. As this report shows pavers provide a more economical solution to traditional pavements when considering their long-term maintenance.
The full report and peer review are available in a downloadable report HERE.
About Interlocking Concrete Pavement Institute ICPI is the trade association representing the growing industry of segmental concrete pavement systems in the Canada and United States. The association's membership includes producers, contractors, suppliers, design professionals and distributors. ICPI is the authority for concrete pavers, which are universally recognized as the best value for pavement systems. The association delivers education and technical guidance leading to awareness, acceptance and use of segmental concrete pavement systems in the Canada and United States. For more information, visit www.icpi.org.
14801 Murdock Street, Suite 230 | Chantilly, VA 20151 PO Box 1150 | Uxbridge, ON L9P 1R2 703.657.6900 www.icpi.org