Newly constructed low-noise asphalt surface fails

Questions are being asked over the construction of a new section of the A1 autobahn in Germany. The highway stretch is being scrutinised due to surface failures and lies close to the city of Bremen but has been open for less than three months.
May 15, 2012 Read time: 1 min
Questions are being asked over the construction of a new section of the A1 autobahn in Germany.

The highway stretch is being scrutinised due to surface failures and lies close to the city of Bremen but has been open for less than three months.

The road carries around 70,000 vehicles/day and its construction was intended to reduce congestion between the port cities of Hamburg and Bremen. Numerous potholes are reported to have appeared in the surface of the highway. Given the recent severe weather, failures of older road surfaces are expected but these problems should not occur on links that have been so recently completed.

The investigations will focus on how water penetration into joints could have already caused the freeze-thaw process to break up the running surface or whether other problems such as material segregation or incorrect mix design could have been factors. The low-noise asphalt surface is crumbling at various points along the 73km section recently opened.

Asphalt milling, paving & compaction Highway & Network Management

Related Content

  • Pavement preservation techniques
    February 16, 2012
    In this second article of a three-part series on pavement preservation, Alan S. Kercher, of Kercher Engineering, discusses the different techniques that can be utilised as part of the preservation toolbox
    Read More
  • Pavement preservation techniques
    April 12, 2012
    In this second article of a three-part series on pavement preservation, Alan S. Kercher, of Kercher Engineering, discusses the different techniques that can be utilised as part of the preservation toolbox An agency should utilise a comprehensive preservation toolbox that includes various techniques, which can be applied to specific needs. There is no one technique that will cost-effectively address all pavement problems. However, there are many preservation techniques that can provide an agency with the ab
    Read More
  • Progress delayed on Kenya's vital highway link
    February 16, 2012
    Kenya is investing in road developments , reports Shem Oirere. A multi-million dollar highway expansion project in Kenya's capital Nairobi may now be delayed for close to a year because of a huge underground network of water, electricity and communication pipes and cables that has slowed down construction works.
    Read More
  • Huge repair bill for Britain's potholes
    May 15, 2012
    Following one of the coldest winters in recent memory, Britain’s roads have stacked up an estimated £10 billion (€11.5 billion) repair bill just for potholes. These are caused by the freeze/thaw cycle: water seeps into cracks in the road surface, expands when frozen and then breaks up when it thaws. It has been estimated that in Britain there is at least one pothole for every 110m (sometimes many more) and that it will take at least 15 years to fix the problem.
    Read More

Highlighted Content