Asphalt Pavement Magazine, Nov / Dec 2011
Placing shoulders with warm mix and 50 percent RAP
By Daniel C. Brown
It would be hard to imagine a greener, more sustainable asphalt paving project than this one. Last summer, Gallagher Asphalt Corp. of Thornton, Illinois, placed 54 miles of shoulder pavement using a warm-mix asphalt design comprised of 50 percent RAP (recycled asphalt product) for the 6-inch base course.
The $4.5 million Illinois Department of Transportation (DOT) project created new shoulders for Illinois Route 53 in southwest suburban Chicago.
The condition of the existing shoulders along the 14.6 centerline miles was very uneven, says Dan Darden, Gallagher’s vice president of construction. In some areas the shoulders were built with 8.5 inches of asphalt, and in other areas there was no asphalt, only stone.
Route 53 is a four-lane urban arterial with a median in some stretches, which means Gallagher paved four shoulders in those areas. The highway carries heavy traffic with a high percentage of trucks. The contractor handled traffic control by sealing off one lane to use for construction while pushing traffic to the opposite side. Three to four crews worked simultaneously, doing milling, laying down a stone base, and paving the shoulders.