Some city streets will be a little smoother this summer
following the 2006 street resurfacing project.
Gary Alcock Sr., director of Bradford City Public Works,
explained Tuesday that eight streets are on tap for a new surface
this year.
“We have Melvin Avenue from East Main Street to Lorana Avenue,
Congress Place from Congress Street to Chestnut Street,” Alcock
said, “Belleview Avenue from Jackson Avenue to John Street; John
from Belleview to Jackson, Oakwood Avenue from Jerome Avenue to
Lincoln Avenue; Linwood Avenue from Willis Avenue to Hoffman
Avenue; Northgate Drive from Bolivar Drive to Meadowbrook Court;
and Main Street from Mechanic to Davis.”
While the summer street project is done every year, this year’s
will be a little bit different.
“This year (the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation) came
up with a new material called Superpave,” Alcock said. “This is the
material we will be using.”
From 1987 to 1993, an agency called the Strategic Highway
Research Program conducted a $50 million effort to develop new ways
to design asphalt for durability. It has been in use in multiple
states, and is now being implemented by PennDOT.
“It’s supposed to be a lot more durable,” Alcock said. “They
actually make the material for the amount of vehicles that are
going to be using it. It’s the way they mix it.”
Alcock explained that the streets department counted the heavy
truck traffic, school buses, garbage trucks and commercial buses
such as ATA buses that use each of the streets to determine what
the usage is by heavy vehicle traffic.
That number is turned over to PennDOT, who then uses it to
determine the proper mix of ingredients to be used in the Superpave
for that street.
“If there was a road that didn’t have a lot of trucks, it would
get a different mix,” he explained. “They estimate it for the car
traffic.”
On Tuesday, Bradford City Council approved advertising for bids
for the street resurfacing project. Alcock explained the project
will likely be undertaken around August or September, and will be
paid with liquid fuel funds.
