How often is this used?

[SignGeek101]

Recently, near my house, there was a resurfacing project on a major stretch of road. It was finally completed in Sept 2014, but instead of standard broken line paint, groves were dug into the surface and this white plastic?... I don't know what the material is... was installed instead. It works really well. The painted crosswalk lines are already faded, but these are very visible and don't fade at all. I only managed to get a picture now since I don't drive much, and took it on the bus.



How often is this done? It's the first I've seen in Winnipeg or anywhere for that matter.

[froggie]

Thermoplast.  Basically heated plastic applied to the pavement surface.  Several Southern states use it, but they also typically don't have to deal with snow/snowplows.

Here in Vermont, VTrans recently experimented with a similar application to what you saw...on the new VT 100 Morrisville bypass, they cut grooves in the pavement and applied thermoplast striping.  Haven't really been over that way to see how it survived the winter, though.

[jeffandnicole]

Thermoplast.  Basically heated plastic applied to the pavement surface.  Several Southern states use it, but they also typically don't have to deal with snow/snowplows.

Here in Vermont, VTrans recently experimented with a similar application to what you saw...on the new VT 100 Morrisville bypass, they cut grooves in the pavement and applied thermoplast striping.  Haven't really been over that way to see how it survived the winter, though.

NJ uses thermoplast for stop lines, crosswalks, etc.  Plows don't affect it whatsoever.

[wxfree]

I have no idea how widely it's used, but when I walked parts of the Chisholm Trail Parkway before it opened, I saw it was used there.

[froggie]

NJ uses thermoplast for stop lines, crosswalks, etc.  Plows don't affect it whatsoever.

That may be the case in New Jersey, but my experience elsewhere suggests otherwise.

[Brian556]

It is very widely used, pretty much on all public roads. Paint does not last long enough, therefore its is only typically used in parking lots.

[roadman]

Recessed thermoplastic.  Use of recessed markings (thermo, polyurea, or epoxy) is increasingly becoming the norm, especially in cold weather states that use open graded or gap graded friction course pavements.  Avoids damage from plowing operations, is more durable than surface applied markings, and obviates the need for recessed in-pavement markers.

[silverback1065]

Thermoplastic is used on all new asphalt roads in Indiana, unless the DOT/city/county is cheap and opts for paint instead.  It's really cool how they stripe roads with it, especially roundabouts.  Stuff smells weird too.

[hbelkins]

Kentucky uses thermoplastic markings for crosswalks, stop bars, pavement-applied directional arrows, most hatching in paved medians, and some center or edge striping. Last summer, a resurfacing project resulted in a fresh coat of asphalt on KY 11 in my little hometown. A few weeks later, the markings were applied. The snowplows this winter really did a number on them. I almost think I prefer paint.

Plus, it can get interesting when you accelerate from a complete stop if you have a front-wheel-drive vehicle, you've stopped with your front tires on the stop bar, and it's been raining.

[silverback1065]

Kentucky uses thermoplastic markings for crosswalks, stop bars, pavement-applied directional arrows, most hatching in paved medians, and some center or edge striping. Last summer, a resurfacing project resulted in a fresh coat of asphalt on KY 11 in my little hometown. A few weeks later, the markings were applied. The snowplows this winter really did a number on them. I almost think I prefer paint.

Plus, it can get interesting when you accelerate from a complete stop if you have a front-wheel-drive vehicle, you've stopped with your front tires on the stop bar, and it's been raining.

That's a big problem, i've had traction issues as well. 

[roadfro]

Nevada DOT, and many of the local public works departments, tend to use thermoplastic for any road marking that is not a lane stripe (crosswalks, lane arrows, ONLYs, etc.) but paint for the lane lines (Botts dots are more common on most non-residential roads in the Las Vegas area). These thermoplastic markings are not usually recessed.

[cl94]

Buffalo (the city) uses it in certain locations for lane markings, crosswalks, et cetera, including centerlines. One example is Amherst Street just west of NY 5. It doesn't last well through the winter. 8 months later, that double yellow line looks quite sad and the stop bar is practically gone. Last winter was particularly bad-just about every bit of thermoplast in western New York is mangled beyond the point of recognition, even the stuff installed last year.

I know a lot of places, parts of Ohio for one, have their plows ride on rubber "shoes" so the metal doesn't contact the pavement. Preserves the pavement and markings, but leaves snow on the roads. That doesn't happen in Upstate New York and northern New England- metal scrapes the pavement here.

[AsphaltPlanet]

A couple of years ago, the MTO used what they called splatter paint markings on a newly resurfaced section of Hwy 400 North of Toronto.  These markings had a random 3d texture of glass beads in them with the intent of trying to increase the reflectivity of the marking.  They looked great until they were almost entirely scraped off the pavement by the snowplough the first year.

[TEG24601]

This is common in Washington for the temporary lines after paving, and then are usually removed, with heat and tongs, before painting is completed.  They are also used for temporary striping in WA, and I have seen them in OR, MT, ND, NE, IL, IN, and MI. They are also using a new version in Washington for some lines that contain raised segments, like rumblestrips, which are quite annoying, and causes those area to no longer get reflectors.