I was cruising down RT 13 between Chittenango and Cazenovia last weekend when I came across this veritable train of equipment belonging to Highway Rehabilitation Corp. If you know anything about that stretch of road you know it is full of twisty turns and steep grades. By no means is it a road that semi trucks typically call home but here were not less than four Kenworths loaded down with oil encrusted hazard placard equipment.
It turns out that all this fancy looking stuff is used for in place asphalt replacement. If you were to watch this magic take place in person you would see old road in front of the truck with new road emerging near the rear of the convoy. It really is that simple. No dump trucks. No pavers. The video below will give you a idea of how this voodoo works.
I can attest that the sections of 13 that had already be repaved were indeed smooth and perfectly finished. I also had to do a double take when the construction zone sign indicated work for the next 26 miles. Can you imagine the headache if traditional milling was taking place for 26 miles. No thanks!
This crew did a street near me in the Boston area about 6 or 7 years ago that still looks great. I’d say it holds up better than traditional milling and paving. They have since done a few more streets here and I hope they do them all eventually.