By Troy Mullins

Do we need more taxation to repair our roads?

Who would question, “If you don’t tear up our roads then you won’t need to repair them?”

I worked in three different asphalt refineries over a period of 22 years.  At each refinery I was involved in asphalt research and product development.  Following that, I developed and began marketing an asphalt additive to make asphalt bind to the rock and sand from which asphalt pavement is made. In a couple of years the sales exceeded $800,000 per year. At that time the company I worked for was in Casper, Wyo.

Years ago the Wyoming Highway Department did a study to find out how destructive heavy loads are to asphalt pavements. They knew from their measurements that when a load passes over the asphalt pavement the pavement compresses slightly. The heavier the load the more the pavement compresses. However, the good news is that the pavement will rebound in a few seconds. Of course, the heavier the load the more the asphalt pavement compresses and the longer it takes to rebound.  If the load is heavy enough the pavement cracks in addition to compressing. Also, if a second load (axle) passes over the pavement before it has recovered the damage will be more severe.

On one occasion I was discussing these problems with an engineer at the Wyoming Highway Department. I asked him, “How much damage does a car do to the pavement compared to an 18 wheel tractor and trailer (five axles)?”  I was surprised at his answer. He said that their studies had shown that it takes over 850 cars to do as much damage as one loaded 18 wheel tractor and trailer.  He also said that other state studies had shown similar results.

In Washington we frequently see heavily loaded truck and trailers moving down the road on 26 wheels (eight axles).  This means that the Washington Department Of Transportation allows 26 wheel truck and trailers on taxpayer built roads.  No other western state allows more than 18 wheels under a tractor and trailer.  The cause of massive road damage in Washington is obvious.

This road damage is readily visible on Washington roads because the frequency of these heavily loaded axles compresses the pavement and allows no recovery time.  Then each wheel lane begins to crack.  If this cracked pavement is not repaired, pieces of pavement will soon begin to break loose and potholes will develop.  Therefore, the pavement is removed in strips in each wheel lane and new pavement is added.  (Watch for these repairs as you drive around.  See the note below.)

As an asphalt chemist and sales person I have driven thousands of miles across the roads in every western state. I have never seen any state except Washington where wheel lane strips of pavement are removed and replaced.

So, do we need more taxes to repair overloaded roads? No! We just need the Washington Department of Transportation to exercise some common sense and get these 26 wheel trucks off our roads. Otherwise, the truck companies should be heavily taxed to pay for the damage they are doing.

NOTE:  The need for road surface maintenance is greatly attributable to the heaviest vehicles.  Based on the findings of the American Association of State Highway Officials (AASHO) road test, damage caused by heavy trucks was long thought to increase with approximately the fourth power of the axle load. This means that one axle of 10 tons on a heavy truck was 160,000 times more damaging to a road surface than an axle of 0.5 tons (car scale).