Micro-Surfacing Needs Time to Cure
Thursday, August 2, 2012 @ 4:35 AM
Micro surfaced roadway is still a little "gummy"
Prince George, B.C.- Residents of the Dornbierer Crescent area will have to wait a couple more weeks before the new surface on their roadway is completely “cured”.
The City has used a process called micro-surfacing on the road, “It’s a means of preservation, not rehabilitation” says the City’s Mick Jones.
According to Jones, a machine that resembles a Zamboni, lays down a thin layer of a polymer material. This material remains pliable for about 4 weeks as that is how long it will take the product to completely cure.
“Traffic will continue to knead the product until it has cured” says Jones who adds, if there are some sections that look like the material was applied with a broom, that’s because, 
it was “They use a broom in a burlap sack to work the material into curb areas”.
it was “They use a broom in a burlap sack to work the material into curb areas”.(at right, rough surface shows where broom was used to match material up to curb)
This is the first time the micro-surfacing method has been used in Prince George since 2004. Jones says it has proven in the past to be effective on residential streets as a means of preserving a roadway’s surface but has not performed well on high speed, high traffic volume areas.
In a recent presentation to City Council, micro surfacing was noted to have a life expectancy of 5 to 7 years and is cost effective at a cost of $7-$8 per square metre. That price is the second least expensive road maintenance cost, with seal coating being the cheapest.
Micro surfacing does not repair reflective cracking, failed asphalt or fill potholes.
The mill and overlay machinery will be back in Prince George on the 13th to continue the major road rehabilitation work in the City. Jones says there will also be some warranty work done as well. He says a section of Foothills between 15th and 18th and a section of University Way, both having been noted as having issues during the first year of installation, will be redone.
Comments
Call it fixing little teeny tiny “potholes” in order to attempt to prevent those big suckers we have …. LOL.
So, we are macro surfacing and we are microsurfacing ………
BTW, I still see many areas that have not been macrosurfaced yet after at least 3 to 4 months of post winter weather (no freeze thaw cycles)
Just another gimmick to try and extend a poorly laid asphalt roadway. Who wants to lay a bet this stuff will peel up line the crack compound over the next few months. I can see where this would be great on a newly laid roadway to extend it’s life, but on the ratty assed roads we have here, it’s almost too little too late. Then we have to see how it stands up to the yahoo plow and grader operators who drag machine blades on the snow free road surface because they are too lazy to lift the blade. Humm…. we will see.
I wonder how it stands up to all of the 1 ton trucks running around PG, as opposed to the passengers cars it was likely tested with? LOL.
who came up with this idea? Weeks till its cured.. are you kidding.. how much oil will be leaked out and end up in the sewer system in that time… and environmental disaster.
Posted by: NMG on August 2 2012 6:05 PM
I wonder how it stands up to all of the 1 ton trucks running around PG, as opposed to the passengers cars it was likely tested with? LOL.
It is meant for quiter residencial streets such as the one in the picture, not busy main roads.
Sorry . . quieter
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