Assessing the condition of your asphalt pavement is a great way to start planning for maintenance and rehabilitation. The various distresses in your pavement are great indicators as to the types of maintenance your parking lot, roadway or outdoor athletic surface may need immediately and in the future. Additionally, assessing your pavement every year or two will give you a better idea of how your pavement is deteriorating and allow you to plan and budget even further in advance. There are many different methods for assessing asphalt pavements. Here are a few options to get you started:

 

1 | Call Bituminous Roadways, Inc. to Have a Trained Professional Assess Your Pavement

The simplest assessment method is to let someone else do the assessment for you. Here at BR our comprehensive pavement assessment program will provide you with a detailed report of the condition of the pavement, a list of various distresses present, a quick assessment of potential ADA concerns, and many pictures documenting everything.

 

2 | Simply Document the Distress Types

One of the most basic types of assessment is to document the types of distresses on your asphalt surface. Using Bituminous Roadways distress guide, walk around your pavement and make a list of the different types of distresses present. The guide even gives information on which maintenance technique might be best suited for each distress type.

 

3 | BR’s Guided Assessment

Another method was developed by BR as a quick and easy assessment. This pavement condition assessment is available as part of our Owners Guide and it is more like a questionnaire about your pavement. Answering these few simple questions and calculating your total score can give you a better idea of the condition of your pavement. Our owners guide also has asphalt maintenance recommendations based on the assessed condition. Please contact the BR pavement engineer for a copy of the pavement assessment by calling 651-686-7001.

 

4 | Pavement Surface Evaluation and Rating (PASER)

The PASER rating system was developed by the University of Wisconsin as a simple and quick visual assessment for roadways. When assessing a pavement using the PASER method, the assessor visually compares the pavement condition to photographic examples of each rating (10 to 1) in the PASER manual. PASER is a good simple system for pavement management programs, and while several of the distresses are specific to roadways, it can still be used for parking lots. The PASER manual is available for free at the link above.

 

5 | ASTM D6433 - Standard Practice for Roads and Parking Lots Pavement Condition Index Surveys

If these methods just seem too simple for you, there is always ASTM D6433. Be sure to wear knee-pads because this method requires you to get up close and personal with your pavement. Each crack, series of cracks, divot, and pothole needs to be measured for length, width, and depth before calculating the Pavement Condition Index (PCI) of your pavement. This complex method is primarily used by research firms to standardize condition analysis, and the method requires a significant amount of training and time to perform assessments.

 

Assessing your pavement every year or two will give you an idea of how your asphalt pavement is deteriorating and allow you to plan for maintenance needs in your budget. Call Bituminous Roadways at 651-686-7001 or fill out our consultation form online. if you'd like a professional pavement assessment performed by our in-house pavement engineer.