Pavement Preservation Program

The budget for the City’s street repair and maintenance program for fiscal years 2019 through 2023 is programmed to include $90 million per year. The program is funded through revenues from the Arizona highway user gas tax and Transportation 2050 (T2050) sales tax.

Prior to the voter approved 35-year Transportation 2050 sales tax, which became effective Jan. 1, 2016, the annual budget for street repair and maintenance was typically between $24 - $27 million.

Through T2050 nearly $1 billion from Transportation 2050 program funds will be allocated to maintain the city’s arterial and major collector street network.

To determine the order and priorities of which streets will receive pavement overlays, Streets utilizes a pavement management system methodology. The foundation of that methodology is field data obtained using a high-tech pavement management vehicle, the Automated Road Analyzer (ARAN). ARAN measures and records the condition of roads, evaluating them on surface roughness, environmental stresses, and structural condition. Based on the resulting pavement condition index (PCI) rating, which is measured 0-100 (worst to excellent), staff uses these objective measurements of roadway conditions to develop an initial list of roads to receive an asphalt overlay. Learn more about ARAN.

Once it is developed, the initial list of roads is put through a rigorous coordination review, which includes evaluating the following:

• Coordination or conflicts with other City projects
• Right of way concerns
• Environmental issues
• Utility issues or conflicts
• Field visual inspections
• Pavement age
• Roadway traffic volumes
• Alternate treatments
• Economic and community impacts

Although objective criteria are used in identifying roads in greatest need of maintenance, staff strives to closely balance street maintenance activities and funding equitably across the city within resource limitations.

Asphalt pavement is designed to be flexible which allows it to adapt to the wide temperature swings that occur in Arizona. Following initial construction, pavement begins the process of oxidation, which is basically the evaporation of the oils in the pavement. Over time, the pavement becomes dry, brittle, more rigid, and less flexible. Repeated traffic loading also contributes to the degradation of the pavement over time.

The aggregate starts wearing away, causing cracks. Some small cracks can start to show in the first year of new pavement. The city of Phoenix strives to provide a quality maintenance program to extend the life cycle of asphalt 25-30 years and even up to 40 years saving taxpayer’s money while providing safe and efficient roadways. See the Maintenance and Resurfacing Techniques section for commonly used pavement maintenance techniques.

 

​Pavement Mill and Overlay

Although there are numerous pavement preservation treatments and maintenance options, the most effective and complete maintenance approach, yet also the most costly, is a mill and overlay of the asphalt pavement. Making the call to overlay is a very important decision that involves a lot of factors.  These factors include maintenance history, physical condition and budget.

Treatment	Description
Mill and  Overlay	A “mill & overlay” is a street maintenance technique that requires the removal of the top layer (2 inches) of a street by the grinding action of a large milling machine. After the top layer is removed, a new layer of pavement is put in its place. Asphalt resurfacing is necessary when the asphalt surface has reached the end of its service life or preventative treatments no longer benefit a road.

 

Pavement Preservation

Pavement preservation treatments are applied to streets to replenish lighter oils and rejuvenate the roadway in order to prolong its service life. Because the cost of applying preservation  treatments is minimal compared to resurfacing the roadway, Phoenix makes an effort to utilize preservation treatments to extend the service life of streets throughout the city.

The Need For Pavement Preservation

• Extends pavement life
• Delays the need for costly rehabilitation or reconstruction
• Improves the overall network condition by keeping good roads good
• Improves pavement condition and helps maintain road conditions safe for users

Examples of the preservation treatments used in the city of Phoenix are listed below. 

Treatment	Description
Crack Seal	Crack seal entails filling cracks in the pavement with modified asphalt rubber. The sealant helps prevent infiltration of water into the pavement. This treatment is used on streets that are in relatively good condition.
Fog Seal	A fog seal is a light application of a diluted slow-setting asphalt emulsion to the surface of an aged pavement surface. Fog seals are used to restore or rejuvenate pavement surface.
Resurfacing	Various other treatments such as Slurry Seal, Fractured Aggregate Surface, and Micro Seal are considered to be resurfacing. These treatments add a thin surface with asphalt emulsion and aggregate to seal the surface and fill small surface defects.

Preparation

Prior to resurfacing a street, concrete work such as curb, gutter, and sidewalk repairs, valley gutter installations, and ADA ramp repairs/retrofits must be completed, including crack sealing. Federal Law requires that ADA sidewalk ramps be installed as part of the local, major, collector-street overlay and micro seal programs. The ramps are installed under a Concrete Services Contract months before the street is scheduled to be resurfaced.

Schedule

The Street Transportation Department is currently planning and prioritizing which streets will be overlaid three to four years from today. Streets that will be resurfaced in the next one to two years have already been identified and are in the middle of the preparation process. Streets are reevaluated every year, as surface conditions may change due to weather, traffic volume, etc.

Street pavement overlay projects are performed at optimal temperatures, and due to Phoenix’s long seasonal temperatures, pavement overlay projects are completed from early spring to late fall.

Note: Work plans are subject to change. Factors that may affect the work plans include, but are not limited to, budgetary constraints, material availability, weather conditions that are not conducive to quality resurfacing or unforeseen circumstances, some of which arise after the resurfacing project has begun.

Pavement Preservation & Overlay Map

This map features completed and upcoming pavement preservation and resurfacing projects. Street overlay work associated with major street improvement projects is also included in this map. This map allows you to select a street and see the type of pavement preservation treatment that is planned for the street and the fiscal year the work is scheduled to take place. This information can be accessed by selecting a street on the map and zooming in.

​Providing advance warning of roadwork and convenience for businesses and residents is a top priority during the street resurfacing process. Notification is provided via door hanger to those properties adjacent to where the resurfacing activity will be taking place two to seven days in advance of the work. Note, before and after the actual resurfacing, work crews may be seen performing other work on the street. Street resurfacing typically occurs in the spring, summer and fall. Crack seal activity typically occurs in the winter. Although the roadwork is scheduled around commute hours, the details of what to expect are different for each type of resurfacing activity. Most commonly, no vehicles will be allowed on the street during the resurfacing process and the street will be closed for a portion of the day.

• ​Slow down when driving through or near any road construction site
• Be alert for construction workers and law enforcement officers
• The milled street before the new layer of asphalt is applied will have a rough surface - drivers, cyclists and pedestrians are advised to use caution

To submit a request for street maintenance contact the Street Maintenance Dispatch Office at 602-262-6284 or email dispatch@phoenix.gov.

Depending on the nature of your request, a supervisor responsible for your area will evaluate the street and contact you to confirm the how your request will be addressed.