Alternative Strategies for Rehabilitation of Low-Volume Roads in Nevada

An overview of the attempt by the Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT) to find alternative rehabilitation strategies to rehabilitate its low-volume road network effectively is provided. Because of Nevada's continuing growth, NDOT is faced with the challenge of how to balance its available funding between pavement preservation and capacity improvement projects. NDOT is responsible for 13,000 lane miles of roadway, of which 3,385 lane miles (26%) qualify as low-volume roads. The low-volume roads have a two-directional average daily traffic of 400 or less. Five roadway projects with a combined total of 111 centerline miles were rehabilitated with 29 combinations of structural and surface strategies. The rehabilitation strategies investigated included full-depth reclamation with lime, cement, asphalts, and foamed asphalt. Various cold-mix, cold-in-place recycling with millings and different rejuvenating agents, and surface treatment test sections were constructed. The constructability issues that were reported during construction are discussed. In addition, pavement condition is examined and laboratory testing is reviewed. Results suggest that NDOT can use alternative rehabilitation strategies in place of its conventional method of 2-in. plant-mix bituminous surface overlay and chip seal to rejuvenate its low-volume roadway network. A cost saving of approximately $100,000 per centerline mile is anticipated.