Twelve state DOTs were named winners of the 2019 Perpetual Pavement Award (PPA) by the Asphalt Pavement Alliance (APA). This is a record number of PPAs awarded in a single year since the awards were first presented in 2001. The award celebrates long-life asphalt pavements that reflect the characteristics of a perpetual pavement design.
According to APA, the award is presented to state DOTs and local agency road owners for well-performing asphalt pavements that are at least 35 years old with proven high-quality structural design. To earn the award, the pavement must have not suffered a structural failure, and it should have an average interval between resurfacing of no less than 13 years. The pavement must demonstrate the characteristics expected from long-life, perpetual pavement design: excellence in design, quality in construction, and value to taxpayers.
Engineers at the National Center for Asphalt Technology (NCAT) at Auburn University evaluated the nominations and validated the results for the 12 Perpetual Pavement Award winners for 2019. Since the PPA was first presented in 2001, 144 pavements in 31 U.S. states and one Canadian province have been honored with the award.
The 2019 winners include:
- Alabama DOT (ALDOT) for a 4.9-mile section of a four-lane divided highway on State Route 210/Ross Clark Circle in Houston County. This is the eleventh PPA for ALDOT.
- Arkansas DOT (ARDOT) for a 2.10-mile section of two-lane U.S. Highway 79 (Section 10) in Jefferson County. ARDOT has earned 10 PPAs.
- Colorado DOT (CDOT), Region 3 for a 23-mile section of two-lane State Highway 141 in Mesa County. This is CDOT’s third PPA.
- Florida DOT (FDOT) for a 9.4-mile section of a six-lane roadway on Interstate 95 in St. Johns County. This is the tenth PPA for FDOT.
- Maryland DOT (MDOT) State Highway Administration for an 8.3-mile section of six-lane Interstate 70 WB in Frederick County. MDOT has earned five PPAs.
- Montana DOT (MDT) for a 15-mile section of two-lane U.S. Highway 2 in Roosevelt County. This is the fifth PPA for MDT.
- Nebraska DOT (NDOT) for a 5.7-mile section of two-lane U.S. Highway 6 in Hitchcock County. NDOT has earned four PPAs.
- North Dakota DOT (NDDOT) for an 11.3-mile section of two-lane North Dakota Highway 5 in Pembina County. This is the first PPA for NDDOT.
- Pennsylvania DOT (PennDOT) for a 2.2-mile section of two-lane State Route 0956 (Segments 50 to 80) in Lawrence County. PennDOT has earned nine PPAs.
- South Carolina DOT (SCDOT) for a 10-mile section of four-lane Interstate 26 in Calhoun and Lexington counties. This is the eighth PPA for SCDOT.
- Tennessee DOT (TDOT) for a 2.3-mile section of four-lane State Route 96 in Rutherford County. This is TDOT’s fifteenth PPA.
- Washington State DOT (WSDOT) for a 7.1-mile section of two-lane State Route 12 in Lewis County. WSDOT has earned six PPAs.
Winning agencies are honored by their local state asphalt pavement association and are presented with an engraved crystal obelisk. The names of the winning agencies and projects are added to a plaque on permanent display at the NCAT Research Center at Auburn University.
“One of the keys to sustainability is long life,” Amy Miller, P.E., National Director of the APA, said in a statement. “Asphalt roads can be engineered to last indefinitely with only routine maintenance and periodic surface renewal.”
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SOURCE: Asphalt Pavement Alliance
