Asphalt vs Concrete Freeways

[thenetwork]

I prefer asphalt. Even when major rehab is required, it can be milled down rather than having to be ripped out down to the dirt and replaced as is done with concrete. Asphalt is more forgiving of imprecision in initial placement, too.

The life of a concrete highway can be extended for many years if "diamond graded" correctly.

I-70 around Rifle, Colorado has had a stretch of concrete  that has been around for decades (might even be the original surface).  About 15 years ago, they did a diamond grading on the existing surface to where it felt and sounded like it was brand new pavement.

Unfortunately, this particular section is on it's last legs as there are some areas with serious degradation that another round of diamond grading cannot fix.

[Road Hog]

I prefer asphalt. Even when major rehab is required, it can be milled down rather than having to be ripped out down to the dirt and replaced as is done with concrete. Asphalt is more forgiving of imprecision in initial placement, too.

The life of a concrete highway can be extended for many years if "diamond graded" correctly.

I-70 around Rifle, Colorado has had a stretch of concrete  that has been around for decades (might even be the original surface).  About 15 years ago, they did a diamond grading on the existing surface to where it felt and sounded like it was brand new pavement.

Unfortunately, this particular section is on it's last legs as there are some areas with serious degradation that another round of diamond grading cannot fix.

Arkansas has a program where they mill old concrete and it makes a huge difference, but the use of it has been sporadic. Most new construction outside of metro areas has been asphalt which is OK now, but in a few years will need resurfacing.

[tolbs17]

Definitely odd that the left lane has darker asphalt compared to the highway itself. Maybe they are not finished yet? Who knows though.

And if they purposely did that, then that's just lazy and stupid imo.

https://goo.gl/maps/VWy7d6ZkjgT2rj769

[GaryV]

How about this one - alternating concrete and asphalt lanes.

https://www.google.com/maps/@42.6500876,-83.2382296,3a,75y,4.1h,78.34t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1smqPGEFAI5e3B_4t-UPEvbw!2e0!7i16384!8i8192?hl=en

[tolbs17]

How about this one - alternating concrete and asphalt lanes.

https://www.google.com/maps/@42.6500876,-83.2382296,3a,75y,4.1h,78.34t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1smqPGEFAI5e3B_4t-UPEvbw!2e0!7i16384!8i8192?hl=en

is it still under construction or did they purposely make it like that?

[AsphaltPlanet]

They milled and resurfaced the outer lanes with asphalt because the former concrete had deteriorated.  The outer lanes tend to deteriorate more quickly than interior lanes due to heavy truck traffic.

[GaryV]

They milled and resurfaced the outer lanes with asphalt because the former concrete had deteriorated.  The outer lanes tend to deteriorate more quickly than interior lanes due to heavy truck traffic.

Not just that; the left lanes are much newer.

[tolbs17]

I'm guessing this is NCDOT's new standard of resurfacing highways.

https://goo.gl/maps/XPBtEauR2BciphFB7

It's to make it look darker and look like this: https://goo.gl/maps/HTeDr9vkEg7q8fqi6

However that is terrible and needs resurfacing after lasting for about roughly 10 years.