Provincial Engineering & Geoscience Week

2 | W I N N I P E G F R E E P R E S S P R O V I N C I A L E N G I N E E R I N G & G E O S C I E N C E W E E K W ith spring (and road repair season) on the horizon, there's good news regarding the city's and province's crumbling infrastructure. The province, city and a diverse group of private contractors have joined with the University of Manitoba's department of civil engineering to find solutions on how to bring our roads back up to speed — and keep them in a state of good repair well into the future. "The group is less than six months old and we've already met a few times," reported Ahmed Shalaby, professor and Municipal Infrastructure Chair for the Department of Civil Engineering at the University of Manitoba. "We're committed to coming up with solutions on how to make our roads better." Shalaby said one of the first things discussed was the need to harmonize specifications followed in the construction of new roads and in the repair of existing roads. "The consensus has been, 'why can't they harmonized?'" he said. "Doing that would make everything simpler, from compliance, storage and supply, construction material, pipes and practices to quality control. Without communication at this level, it's hard to see benefits, so a lot of discussion has been devoted to see what will make the most difference in this area." Another key area — finding ways to improve on material performance (making roads last longer) — has also been discussed in-depth. Not surprisingly, cutting-edge technology and techniques will figure prominently in making strides in improving road durability. "Our hope is that new testing methods will help us find ways to improve quality control, which will help us improve the life cycle of our roads," Shalaby said. "We've also been looking at extending the construction season through use of technology that will enable us to deliver projects faster, and increase quality." Not only will technology allow contractors to do work in cooler "buffer season" weather (temperatures from 5 C down to temperatures below zero), but technology will help reduce costs through utilizing equipment better and shortening wait times. One such technology that's been identified — warm mix asphalt — is looking promising, he added. "Additives can be put into the mix (which is heated to 120 C) that will reduce energy consumption and allow construction crews to work with it in cold weather. It performs well in colder weather, so it looks as if crews could be able to pave in temperatures of zero, or slightly below." At the same time, better repair methods are being identified. "We're looking at different repair methods that work better, with the emphasis on repair methods that are better long- term solutions," Shalaby explained. "We're also assessing the life cycle cost of various treatments so we can more accurately determine the cost of a method that's selected." Most importantly, an emphasis is being put on selecting the best — not cheapest — repair method. In the past, the city has often opted to use the cheapest, looking at the short term rather than the long term. "When it comes to road repairs, it's very important that you don't just base choices on initial cost," he said. "Changing that mindset is one of the most difficult challenges we're dealing with." That said, Shalaby is optimistic the collaboration is going to yield positive results. "It's our job to make recommendations, to show the city, province and contractors what the science is showing us (about best solutions)," he said. "After that, it's up to them to adopt those solutions. I believe there's a good chance the solutions will be used if they're deemed effective." He said there's one more thing the various parties — especially the city and province — need to commit to beside proper solutions: timely repairs. "Timely repairs are another part of the solution — that you need to do them as soon as the need becomes obvious," said Shalaby. "I think there's now a good understanding that road maintenance is a continuous process. We're still in the early stages of this project, and finding solutions will take time. I'm hopeful that our combined efforts will produce the benefits we expect." ❚ U of M professor Ahmed Shalaby hopes the new group will find solutions to improve the life cycle of roads and the construction season. University of Manitoba photos Roads of the future By Todd Lewys for the Free Press An emphasis is being put on selecting the best — not cheapest — repair method. In the past, the city has often opted to use the cheapest, looking at the short term rather than the long term.

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