Public Works maintains an inventory of all the streets in Broomfield through its Pavement Management System. The
inventory, which is updated yearly, assesses the surface condition of each street,
using a standardized method of pavement distress identification
developed by the United States Department of Transportation's Federal
Highway Administration. Distresses for each street are stored in a
pavement management database that, when applied to a formula, calculates
the Remaining Service Life (RSL) of a street section.
Under a new strategy developed in 2010, the Pavement Preservation
Program will utilize four methods that address improvements to existing
street system pavement conditions:
Street Seal Coat - Performed on streets that have minimal amount of pavement distress. Polymer/asphalt emulsion is
applied to the street surface, preserving and protecting the asphalt surface.
Mitigation 1 - Performed on streets that have a moderate to severe amount of distress. Routing patching is
performed to protect the sub-grade from further exposure caused by areas of failing asphalt.
Mitigation 2 - Performed on streets that have severe pavement distress.
Patching and limited sub-grade repairs
are performed and a seal coat (chip seal, cape seal, double chip seal, scrub seal, or micro-surface) is applied
to maximize the life of the mitigation efforts and enhance drivability.
Street Reconstruction - Process involves removal of existing pavement, reconditioning the sub-grade, and the
installation of new asphalt pavement.
The Public Works Department has concluded that this is the most cost-effective way to maintain street conditions. When
mitigation is applied, the underlying structural problems are not fixed. Instead, mitigation temporarily provides a
smooth riding surface and a new looking street surface. This treatment will have to be reapplied every two to three years
until the street is reconstructed.
Polymer/asphalt emulsion is
applied to the street surface, preserving and protecting the asphalt surface.