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Quality Highways - Key Preservation Needs on Wisconsin's State Highway System - Wisconsin TransLinks 21
Click HERE for graphic. MISSION STATEMENT TRANSLINKS 21 - Wisconsin's 21st century transportation plan - will outline a comprehensive transportation system that will move people and goods efficiently, strengthens our economy, protects our environment, and supports our quality of life. Working with DOT, the public will identify Wisconsin's transportation needs - and help to make tomorrow's transportation choices. Tommy G. Thompson, Governor Charles H. Thompson, Secretary Quality Highways: Key Preservation Needs On Wisconsin's State Highway System Wisconsin Department of Transportation Division of Highways July, 1994 Table of Contents I. Executive Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 II. Preservation Needs for Milwaukee County Freeways. . . . . . . 3 Ill. Preservation Needs for the Existing Corridors 2020 Multilane Backbone System . . . . . . 9 IV. Pavement Preservation Needs: Corridors 2020 Connector System and Non-Corridors 2020 Routes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13 V. All Season Highways . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 VI. Maintenance Needs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17 VII. Reallocation Options. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21 Quality Highways I. Executive Summary Wisconsin's state highway system is the major carrier of people-and goods throughout the state. It links Wisconsin to the rest of the nation and the rest of the world. Over the past decade, real progress has been made in modernizing and rehabilitating the system. Although substantial needs still exist on the current system, state highways generally provide a fairly good level of service. The focus of this paper is on the preservation needs that will develop on state highways during the coming decade. Preservation of the physical system, as well as the level of service it provides, is vitally important to Wisconsin's economy and to highway users. Wisconsin citizens and businesses rely on quality highways. TRANSLINKS 21 is evaluating highway issues within a multimodal framework. This is essential in order to develop an appropriate transportation vision for Wisconsin. The vision calls for a transportation system that can meet. the changing needs of travelers and shippers in a manner that is both cost effective and sensitive to environmental, land use, economic development, and other policy concerns. Highways will continue to be a major part of Wisconsin's multimodal transportation system. The development of transportation plans within a multimodal framework does not reduce the importance of preserving the investment we have made in our highway system. While preserving our highway system must be of high priority, several issues will force difficult decisions for policy makers in the years to come. These issues are summarized as follows: Milwaukee County Freeways have aged to the point where major rehabilitation and reconstruction is required. The East-West portion of 1-94 must be reconstructed or travel will be impaired by rough pavements and bridge weight restrictions. The Marquette Interchange is also nearing the point where reconstruction will be required. Current resources of about $25 million per year will have to increase to $64 million per year by 1996 and then to about $84 million per year by 2000 (until 2010) if the system is to be maintained, even without modernization. With modernization, funding must increase to $67 million by 1996 and then to about $126 million per year by 2000. Existing Corridors 2020 Multilane Backbone routes are also old and in need of reconstruction. The Interstate system and the multilane portions of US highways 41, 5 1, 53 and 151 carry over 33% of the traffic on the state highway system despite the fact that they comprise only about 9% of the mileage. Without a significantly augmented effort, the miles of rough and deteriorating pavement on this system will increase, bridge conditions will worsen, geometric deficiencies will remain unaddressed and interchange modernization will be slowed. On average, an additional $49 million per year is needed between 1994 and 2005 in order to avoid this increasing problem. 1 Quality Highways Pavement Needs on Non-Corridors 2020 Backbone routes are demonstrated by projections made possible with a newly developed pavement management system. At current program levels, the number of rough miles on non-backbone routes can be expected to grow from slightly more than 800 to nearly 1600. Additional funding of about $25 million per year between 1994 and 2005 would arrest that trend. The backlog of existing needs could be addressed if the level of additional funding were increased to $39 million per year. All Season Highways are not available in some parts of the,state. Some 315 miles of the state highway system have reduced weight limits in the Spring of the year, primarily disrupting the agricultural and forest products industries. Additional funding of $13 million per year would correct this problem over the next ten years. Needs on roads with the highest traffic volumes could be addressed for $6 million per year. Maintenance needs and opportunities exist in several areas: 1) improved snow removal; 2) reduced use of deicing chemicals; and 3) increased pavement and shoulder maintenance. The additional cost of implementing these measures is $10 million per year over the next decade. All of these areas represent important needs that will preserve Wisconsin's state highway system and maintain the quality of service it provides. The quality of service provided by the state highway system will decline without increased investments in system preservation. 2 Quality Highways II. Preservation Needs for Milwaukee County Freeways Freeways in Milwaukee County carry more passengers and goods per mile than any other highways in the state. Due to their age and the amount of traffic they carry, they are also among the most deteriorated roads on the state highway system. Unless sizable investments are made to rebuild these roads over the next decade, traffic will be disrupted by extremely rough pavements, bridge weight restrictions and increasing accident rates. Milwaukee County freeways are critical to the economy of southeast Wisconsin because they provide an essential link between people and businesses throughout the region. They also facilitate the movement of trips passing through southeast Wisconsin on their way to or from other parts of the state and nation. The average lane mile of freeway in Milwaukee County carries 16,800 vehicles each day while the average freeway lane mile in the rest of the state carries only 5,300 vehicles per day (see Figure 1). This difference, of over 3 to 1, demonstrates the unique nature of the demands placed on the Milwaukee system. Click HERE for graphic. These extreme demands are also seen in the traffic volumes entering the major interchanges in the area. Wisconsin's six highest volume interchanges are located in Milwaukee County. Figure 2 shows the range of traffic volume on those interchanges and also demonstrates that they far exceed the volume of the next highest interchange, the Badger, where I-90, 1-94 and USH 30 meet just east of Madison. A total of 83,000 vehicles enter the Badger Interchange during a typical day, while 270,000 enter the Zoo Interchange and 235,000 use the Marquette Interchange. Pavements and bridges go through a predictable life cycle, regardless of use. They can be rehabilitated after initial construction, but the extra life purchased by each rehabilitation gradually decreases as the underlying pavement and bridge structures age. Eventually, complete reconstruction is required in order to minimize the life cycle costs of keeping the road open to 3 Quality Highways traffic and to avoid increasingly frequent disruptions of traffic as rehabilitation efforts need to be spaced closer and closer together. Many of the pavements and bridges on the freeway system in Milwaukee County are reaching the end of their overall service lives and will soon require reconstruction. Pavement overlays and other measures short of reconstruction will no longer be cost effective in many cases, and will subject travellers and shippers to increasing inconvenience and delay. The need to reconstruct these pavements, many of which are approaching 40 years of age, is consistent with experience in Chicago and other cities, and has been confirmed through extensive field inspection of the Milwaukee freeway system. The East-West Freeway (I-94) is a good example of the rehabilitation and reconstruction needs that exist on the freeway system. This leg of the freeway system was initially constructed in 1963. It was resurfaced in 1976 and will require another resurfacing in 1996. The current asphalt surface will have provided service to more than 160,000 vehicles per day (both directions) for 20 years. The 1996 resurfacing is expected to last only half as long. The steady reduction in performance is due to the accumulated damage caused by water infiltration, temperature variations and the constant pounding of traffic. By the year 2006, the surface of the pavement will have become intolerably rough once more. An additional overlay will not be cost effective because it will last even less than 10 years. Reconstruction is the most cost effective option and ensures a new surface that can provide service for up to 25 years without significant maintenance expenses and disruptions to traffic. When it needs replacement by 2006, the original pavement structure on the East-West Freeway will be 43 years old. By comparison, parts of Chicago's Kennedy Expressway are about 30 years old and have been under reconstruction for the past several years. Can the East-West Freeway be patched and held together longer without rehabilitation? Only for a short time, and not without escalating maintenance costs and growing inconvenience to the traveling public. The winter thaws of 1994 spawned many potholes on the freeway. Even with crews working on weekends to avoid the heaviest traffic, lane closures raised havoc with the users of the freeway. Traffic delays of this type would become frequent and quickly become intolerable if the pavement is not rehabilitated soon. Maintenance and other surface related costs would also increase significantly. Click HERE for graphic. 4 Quality Highways The extreme age of Milwaukee's freeway system, and the impending need for major Bridge Deck Area By Year of Construction interstate Highway Bridges preservation investments, is further illustrated by the age of the bridges that carry traffic over the cross streets and through the interchanges on the system. As illustrated in Figure 3, the bulk of the structures, as measured by surface area, were built in the 1960's and will soon be nearly years old. While some bridges last longer before needing replacement, three factors combine 1950's 1960's 1970's 1980's and 90's to make extended service lives impossible for many structures in 10 Milwaukee County Remainder of State Milwaukee County: First, the design of some bridges does not allow cost effective removal and replacement of the riding surface. This design was selected in the early 1960's because it enabled the tight curvatures often required by interchanges. Overlays and other treatments have been applied to these bridges in recent years, but the underlying bridge decks will not be adequate to allow effective rehabilitation in the future. When the surface can no longer be maintained, these bridges must be rebuilt. Advanced construction materials and techniques will allow improved designs to be used when these bridges are reconstructed. Second, the traffic volumes using the freeway system are very high. Increases in traffic over the last 30 years have been unprecedented. The impact of this traffic growth was magnified by the fact that some of the originally planned freeway segments were never built, forcing more traffic onto completed segments. Federal laws regulating maximum vehicle weights were also amended, allowing heavier vehicles on the roads. Heavy vehicles and large volumes of traffic both cause wear that shortens the life of a bridge. Finally, the surfaces of many bridges were severely damaged by studded tires in the 1960's and early 1970's. These tires were banned once damage became evident, but they had already robbed the existing bridges of many years of service life. Reconstructing the Milwaukee County freeway system as it wears out will be expensive. Nearly 45% of Wisconsin's Interstate bridge deck area, which is a good proxy for bridge cost, exists in Milwaukee County. For this reason, reconstruction of Milwaukee County freeways will require much more bridge work than would be experienced in rural parts of the state. Since bridges are more costly to rebuild than pavements, the average cost per mile will be higher. A comparison Click HERE for graphic. 5 Quality Highways of the programmed cost for reconstructing I-90/94 in Juneau County with the projected cost of the East-West Freeway between the Zoo and Stadium Interchanges illustrates the difference. The Juneau County project is costing about $550,000 per lane mile. The East- West Freeway project is expected to cost about $2.9 million per lane mile. Preserving the structural integrity of the freeway system is the primary and immediate motivation for the rehabilitation and reconstruction of the system, but the final cost and the future efficiency of the system will depend heavily on the designs selected for the interchanges needing replacement. Two options exist: Replace the interchanges in-kind, without changing the configuration of the ramps; and Replace the interchanges and redesign the ramp configurations so that they can efficiently handle the traffic volumes of today and tomorrow. When deciding on the design of the interchanges needing replacement, policy makers must consider the safety and congestion problems in Milwaukee County. They must also consider that the design choices being made in the next few years will greatly impact the efficiency of the freeway system through the middle of the next century. Once reconstructed, the basic functioning of an interchange cannot be modified. Travellers and shippers will live with the results of today's decisions until at least the year 2050, and probably much longer. Safety problems are very apparent at some of the current interchanges on the freeway system. For example, the overall accident rate for the Marquette Interchange (where 1-94, I-43 and I-794 meet in downtown Milwaukee) is about 4.5 accidents per million miles of vehicle travel. The north leg of the interchange (I-43 to the Hillside Interchange) has an accident rate of nearly 10. Both of these compare to the average rate for urban freeways in Wisconsin of less than two. The Marquette Interchange will need to be reconstructed starting in about the year 2000. The cause of the large number of accidents at the interchange can be found in its dated design and the high traffic volumes using the interchange. For example, left on and off ramps combine with internal service ramps (entrances and exits that directly service surface streets from within the interchange itself) force many merging movements and acceleration/deceleration points for drivers: movements and speed changes that cause accidents. Another safety and operational problem is that the length of the left off ramps is often insufficient to handle the traffic wanting to exit at a given location. This means that traffic sometimes backs up into lanes handling through traffic and the risk of an accident increases significantly. Traffic delays increase as well. An updated interchange design would remove all of the left on and off ramps to improve safety and traffic flow. Left on and off ramps at the Marquette and other interchanges also make it impossible to operate a designated bus lane or high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lane through the interchange. Removing them would increase the flexibility of the system in the future. 6 Quality Highways Modem interchange design would significantly reduce the number of accidents at the Marquette, but constructing a more efficient design would mean rebuilding much of the downtown freeway system (28th Street east to the lake front and north to the Hillside Interchange). The cost of a redesign would be nearly $600 million compared to about $200 million for an in-kind reconstruction of the Marquette. This work would be accomplished in stages. However, if replacement in-kind is selected, users will see no relief in the bottlenecks and accidents at the interchange. With an improved design, safety and traffic flow will improve and the interchange will be able to function effectively should traffic levels continue to grow. The focus of this discussion is on preservation of the existing freeway system, not on expansions of or additions to the system. Costs for rehabilitating and reconstructing Milwaukee County freeways are presented below. The only capacity related work included in the estimates is a limited expansion of 1-43 from Brown Deer Road to Bender Road (3.3 miles) that is planned to coincide with the need to replace the existing pavement. Freeway traffic management investments are also planned, and will also allow existing capacity to be used more efficiently. Although capacity expansion needs are not included here, it must be recognized that traffic congestion is an ongoing and growing problem. A study of transportation alternatives in the I-94 East- West Corridor is attempting to find some solution to the congestion on that route. HOV lanes, bus ways and light rail are among the options being considered. All of these options will increase costs and will need to be considered when designing interchanges and replacement facilities. Current projections indicate that much of the Zoo Freeway (USH 45) and large parts of the North-South Freeway (I-94/I-43) will become congested by the year 2010 and may require the consideration of similar options. Annual preservation needs for Milwaukee County freeways are summarized in Figure 4. There are three basic alternatives. These include the following: 1) Continue the current funding level and allow the condition of the system to deteriorate; Click HERE for graphic. 7 Quality Highways 2) Increase funding to preserve the system and rebuild interchanges without design changes to enhance safety and improve operations; and 3) Increase funding to preserve the system and make safety and operational improvements as interchanges are rebuilt. The funding level currently dedicated to the Milwaukee County freeway system is about $25 million per year. Continuing to provide funding at this level would lead to much rougher pavements, weight limitations on some bridges and increased traffic disruption from stop gap maintenance efforts. Following a strategy of system preservation and rebuilding interchanges in kind requires that funding be increased to about $64 million per year for the 1996- 1999 period and to about $84 million per year in the 2000-2010 period (excluding inflation). This strategy would provide for smooth pavements and avoid bridge weight restrictions. Following a strategy of additional safety and operational improvements, which would improve safety and traffic flow through the interchanges, funding would need to increase to about $67 million per year from 1996-1999 and to $126 million from 2000 to 2010. 8 Quality Highways III. Preservation Needs for the Existing Corridors 2020 Multilane Backbone System The existing Corridors 2020 multilane backbone system is the primary carrier of people and goods throughout Wisconsin. The system is comprised of the Interstate system and the multilane portions of US highways 41, 51, 53 and 151. This section concentrates on the portion of the system outside of Milwaukee County since Highway Miles and Travel By Highway System needs on Milwaukee County freeways have Outside Milwaukee County already been discussed.System: Click HERE for graphic. Excluding Milwaukee County from state totals, existing multilane backbone routes comprise 8.7% of the miles of the state highway system and carry more than 33% of the miles of travel. Figure 5 contrasts the roadway miles and vehicle miles of travel on state highways outside Milwaukee County, by highway class. As demonstrated by the intensity of use, the existing multilane backbone system provides services to the travelers and shippers in rural Wisconsin that are just as important as those the freeway system provides to Milwaukee County and the rest of southeast Wisconsin. Click HERE for graphic. Like the Milwaukee County freeway system, much of the existing multilane backbone system is old and in need of reconstruction. If these improvements are not made, travelers and shippers in Wisconsin will experience decreasing ride quality, increased travel times and increased chances of being involved in an accident. Many of the routes on the existing multilane backbone system were constructed in the 1950's and 1960's (see Figure 6). Some pavement reconstruction has already taken place, but the need for reconstruction is increasing as the system ages. Pavement reconstruction can be up to five times more expensive than resurfacing, leading to the need for greater dollar investments on the system as it ages. 9 Quality Highways The bridges on the existing multilane backbone system reflect an age distribution similar to that for pavements. While bridge replacement needs are not as significant as they are for Milwaukee County freeways, many of bridges are approaching an age where major rehabilitation and deck replacement is required. A bridge deck is typically replaced once during the service life of a bridge, and this usually occurs when a bridge is around 35 years old. As shown in Figure 7, over 50% of the bridges with their original decks in place will reach an age of 35 years or more within the next decade. Deck replacement needs will increase. The needs summarized below were drawn from the 1992 State Highway Plan and updated to reflect the current six year highway program, existing bridge conditions and improved pavement information available through Wisconsin's recently developed pavement management system. They were reviewed in detail and confirmed by department engineers familiar with system conditions. The needs relate to system preservation, not increases in system capacity. They include costs for: resurfacing and reconstructing rough pavements, addressing geometric deficiencies, replacing deteriorated bridge decks, reconstructing bridges at the end of their service lives, and modernizing existing interchanges in order to improve their safety and operational characteristics. Some congestion problems are also likely to develop on the existing multilane backbone system. Potential solutions to these problems may or may not include increases in highway capacity. Investments in non-highway modes may offer other alternatives (See the TRANSLINKS 21 report Corridors 2020 Review and Update for a further discussion of these issues.) However, regardless of the choices made involving other modes, the needs outlined here will remain critically important to travelers and shippers in Wisconsin. A couple of examples may help to illustrate the nature and scope of the needs outlined in this section: One is USH 51 in the Wausau area, which wa s constructed in 1964. Its original concrete pavement is deteriorating. Its bridges and interchanges are old. Many of the interchanges Click HERE for graphic. 10 Quality Highways on the route employ inefficient designs that cause confusion for the traveler and slow the flow of traffic. Reconstructing the pavements on this portion of USH 51, rehabilitating its bridges and making a few modifications to interchanges is projected to cost in excess of $60 million. This work should be completed by the early years of the next century. None of this work is in a current financial plan. Another is 1-94 near Black River Falls. The soils and base beneath the pavement no longer provide adequate support, causing concrete punchouts and severe cracking of the surface. The pavement needs to be reconstructed in order to correct the problems with the soils and base. Simply patching and resurfacing the pavement would not be cost effective because the surface would deteriorate rapidly. Annual preservation needs on the existing multilane backbone system are summarized in Figure 8. There are three basic alternatives: 1) Continue current funding levels and allow the condition of the system to deteriorate; 2) Increase funding to address some emerging pavement and bridge needs as well as critical interchange modernization needs; and 3) Increase funding to address all preservation, safety and modernization needs. An average of $59 million per year is currently committed to projects on the existing multilane backbone system. The annual cost of addressing all the preservation needs on the system are estimated to be $108 million between 1994 and 2005, an increase of $49 million per year (excluding inflation). The middle option is estimated to cost a total of $80 million per year, representing an increase of $21 million over the current program level. If the work identified here is not completed, the condition of the bridges and pavements on this critical portion of the state highway system can be expected to deteriorate. If a bridge deck Click HERE for graphic. 11 Quality Highways can't be replaced when needed, the weights of vehicles using the bridges must be restricted. This will increase costs for heavy vehicles required to choose less convenient routings to their destinations. Interchange modernization work will also be delayed, causing bottlenecks to continue at interchanges that cannot efficiently handle the volumes of traffic wanting to use them. Without increased attention to pavement renewal, the number of rough miles of pavement will also increase (see Figure 9). A rough pavement is defined as one with a pavement serviceability index (PSI) of less that 2.5. The scale used ranges from 5.0, a perfect pavement, to 1.0, an almost impassable pavement. A PSI of 2.5 marks the point where surface renewal is called for on these routes. The impacts of rough miles include driver discomfort and increased wear and tear on vehicles. Downgrading pavement improvements from reconstruction to resurfacing is an alternative that would allow more pavements to be treated with fewer dollars, but this approach would be penny wise and pound foolish. As discussed earlier, pavements go through a predictable life cycle. The ability of an aging pavement to support additional overlays declines over time. The life of a resurfacing is shortened significantly if the underlying pavement structure is inadequate to support the pounding exerted by traffic. As the life obtained from a resurfacing decreases, the number of needed renewals and the overall life cycle cost of preserving the system increase accordingly. Unnecessary traffic delays and interference caused by the extra rehabilitation work lead to significant extra costs for highway users in terms of lost time and inconvenience. A reconstructed pavement can go up to 25 years before needing rehabilitation, minimizing life cycle costs and disruption from future pavement renewal activities. Click HERE for graphic. 12 Quality Highways IV. Pavement Preservation Needs: Corridors 2020 Connector System and Non-Corridors 2020 Routes Pavement preservation on Corridors 2020 connectors and non- Corridors 2020 routes will also be a significant and growing need in the coming decade. These routes make up over 85% of all miles on the state highway system, and a significant number of those miles are rough and in need of improvement. The number of rough highway miles will grow unless additional resources are dedicated to pavement preservation. The ability to anticipate pavement needs on state highways has been enhanced recently by the development of a pavement management system. This planning system incorporates historical information on individual pavements along with up to date information on pavement performance. Information on when pavements were initially constructed is used to provide insight into whether they are at the end of their service lives or whether an overlay will be a cost effective preservation strategy. Currently, 830 miles of non-Corridors 2020 backbone routes have a pavement serviceability index (PSI) less than 2.0. Rough mileage could nearly double over the next decade without increased attention to pavement preservation (see Figure 10). Using a PSI of 2.0 as a threshold already represents a willingness to accept somewhat lower service on these routes when compared to the backbone routes which carry significantly higher traffic volumes. To put this threshold into perspective, pavements rarely fall below a PSI of 1.75 before they are improved. A doubling of the number of miles below 2.0 would, therefore, represent a real and significant decline in ride quality on the state highway system. Three alternatives exist for addressing pavement needs on Corridors 2020 connector and non-Corridors 2020 routes: 1) Continue the level of pavement renewal in the existing state highway program, allowing the overall ride quality of the system to decline; Click HERE for graphic. 13 Quality Highways 2) Increase the level of pavement renewal enough to keep the ride quality of the system from deteriorating; and, 3) Increase the level of pavement renewal to address pavement needs as they emerge and eliminate the current backlog of needed pavement improvements. An extra $25 million per year will be needed between 1994 and 2005 in order to keep the system from deteriorating (see Figure 11). Retiring the backlog of pavement needs and addressing emerging needs as they arise will require the current program level to be increased by $39 million per year. Click HERE for graphic. 14 Quality Highways V. All Season Highways Parts of central and northern Wisconsin are economically disadvantaged by seasonal weight restrictions placed on 315 miles of the state highway system. These highways include 102 miles classified as arterials and 213 miles classified as collector routes. Many of these highways are important links in agricultural or forest products transportation. Demands to upgrade these roads were strongly expressed by businesses, regional planners and truck operators during public meetings held as part of the TRANSLINKS 21 planning process. Roads that fall in this category are typically old and have weaknesses in their pavement base. Inadequate bases make them unable to carry heavy loads while the ground is saturated during the Spring months. Heavy loads would severely damage these roads during this period, perhaps even placing them out of service. Temporary load limits are the solution currently used. This forces haulers to either suspend operations, reduce the size of the loads they haul, or use more circuitous routings. All of these options have a negative impact on highway users and Wisconsin's economy because they either reduce business income or increase the costs of producing goods. As shown in Figure 12, a program to upgrade all 315 miles and remove seasonal restrictions would cost $13 million per year over a 10 year period. An intermediate option would be to upgrade only those roads classified as arterials. Generally, these routes have the highest traffic volumes and the investment would immediately benefit the most traffic. Following this approach would reduce the cost to $6 million per year over 10 years. Click HERE for graphic. 15 Quality Highways 16 Quality Highways VI. Maintenance Needs The department works continually to assure that the state highway system is maintained to the high standards expected by travelers and shippers in Wisconsin. Activities included in meeting this maintenance responsibility include plowing snow, ice control, - preserving and repairing pavements and shoulders, inspecting and repairing bridges, cleaning and maintaining roadside facilities, maintaining roadside vegetation, controlling and permitting non- highway use of our right-of-way and responding to emergencies along or affecting our roadways. Maintaining and preserving the investment made in the state highway system requires constant improvement in the efficiency and effectiveness of maintenance operations. The cost of maintaining the state highway system is influenced by many factors, including the level of service demanded by our customers, the maintenance technologies employed and the volume of traffic using the system. All of these factors exert upward pressure on the cost of maintaining the state highway system: our customers demand more uniformly maintained roads in all seasons of the year; ever improving technology provides better tools to use, but there are often additional costs involved with initial implementation (the payback being more efficient operations and better performance in the future); and, increasing traffic volumes and truck loadings place a growing burden on roads and bridges. The annual increments in funding required to address major maintenance needs are summarized in Figure 13 and discussed below. Snow Removal The influence of changing service expectations is most evident in the area of snow removal. For many years, Wisconsin has used a stratified system for snow removal based on the average daily traffic on a route. The highest volume routes are given 24 hour service, with bare pavements as Click HERE for graphic. 17 Quality Highways soon as possible after a storm. The lowest volume routes are given more limited evening and weekend service. Evidence is growing that the public simply does not support this stratified approach. People who drive on lower volume roads and work weekends or second shifts expect the same level of service as those who drive on higher volume routes at prime times. Most travelers and shippers expect to travel unimpaired by weather throughout the winter. The current policy does not support their desires. The cost of modifying the current snow removal policy to provide 24 hour service on all state owned roads is estimated to be $8.4 million per year. Intermediate steps could be taken that would cost less while still providing a higher level of service than is now available on some roads. For example, the annual cost would be $1.1 million if we increased the speed of snow removal on low volume roads to that available on roads with moderate traffic volumes. Reducing Use Of Deicing Chemicals Winter maintenance is also an area where technological enhancements can improve maintenance operations and service. Deicing chemicals are required to provide the winter service levels that the public expects. The impact of those chemicals on the environment is a major concern. New technologies to more precisely control the application of such chemicals are available and have been piloted in Wisconsin. Computerized spreaders have clearly demonstrated more accurate control of the amount of chemical that is used. Ice control effectiveness remains unchanged and the amount of chemical applied is greatly reduced. The cost of equipping all winter maintenance trucks with this equipment is estimated to be $8 million. This investment could be staged over 10 years, for an annual cost of $800,000. Pavement and Shoulder Maintenance Expectations for higher levels of maintenance also extend to pavements and shoulders. Motorists want smooth, safe, well- maintained roads. These customer expectations and the detrimental effects of Wisconsin's harsh winters on pavement structures add up to a continually increasing need for joint and pothole repair, wedging of ruts and dips, thin overlays, seal-coats, and shoulder grading. The incremental cost to meet the demand for increasing pavement and shoulder maintenance is $1 million per year. Our counties, in general, will be able to redirect manpower from other projects in order to perform this additional work. The added funding will cover labor and materials. Beyond meeting current expectations, another significant maintenance issue looms if increased funding is not made available to provide for the pavement resurfacing and reconstruction needs discussed earlier in this paper. Pavement and shoulder maintenance activities are sometimes used 18 Quality Highways to "carry" a pavement for a short time until an improvement can be programmed. A shortage of funding for pavement improvements will increase the need for pavement and shoulder maintenance activities in order to avoid dramatic declines in the condition of the state highway system and "carry" pavements for longer and longer periods of time. 19 Quality Highways 20 Quality Highways VII. Reallocation Options Reallocation of existing highway funding is a policy issue needing to be discussed in light of the growing investments required to preserve the state highway system. If increased funding is not available to address all justified rehabilitation needs, some reallocations will be implemented in order to accomplish those with highest priority. It must be recognized, however, that significant reallocations will result in substantial costs for highway users. Many beneficial improvements and services will not be provided under any reallocation approach. The long term cost of maintaining the state highway system will also increase, since substantial investments are often required to minimize life cycle costs. Policy makers must consider these impacts when deciding whether critical needs should be met through increased funding or a refocusing of current programs. The preservation needs outlined in this report are currently funded under two major categories: Highway Rehabilitation and Highway Maintenance. The Highway Rehabilitation category is, in turn, broken into three programs: 3R (Resurfacing, Reconditioning and Reconstruction), Bridge, and Interstate. The 3R program supports preservation of the non-Interstate Highway portion of the state highway system. The program addresses deficiencies that range from structural deterioration to outdated design features that can make a highway unsafe given current or projected traffic volumes. Preservation needs on non-Interstate Highways are funded by this program. The Bridge program preserves the bridges on non-Interstate Highways. The program funds investments to rehabilitate or replace bridges and bridge decks when they can no longer safely carry traffic. The Interstate program preserves the pavements and bridges on Interstate Highway portion of the state highway system. The type of work funded is identical to that accomplished under 3R and bridge. The Highway Maintenance program funds all maintenance activities on the state highway system, including Interstate Highways. The type of work accomplished includes snow plowing, deicing, installation and replacement of traffic signs and markings, mowing, trash pickup and upkeep of rest areas. Additional investments in snow removal, equipment for applying deicing agents and for pavement and shoulder maintenance would need to be drawn from this program area. This paper has indicated that needs are increasing in all of these program areas. If required, reallocations, either among these programs or within a given program, would largely focus on reducing preservation and maintenance activities on the lower volume portions of the state 21 Quality Highways highway system. Using limited funds to address priority needs on the higher volume routes, such as Interstate Highways and the Corridors 2020 backbone routes, would maximize the economic and mobility benefits realized from the dollars that are available for highways in Wisconsin. The magnitude of the program level impacts involved can be demonstrated by an example that would divert $35 million per year from lower volume state highways. This level of reallocation would be sufficient to fund only near term needs on Milwaukee County freeways or on Corridors 2020 backbone routes. A reallocation of $35 million per year from the lower volume minor arterial and collector portions of the state highway system would represent a funding reduction of 40% on these routes. This reduction could be accomplished by delaying projects, down-scoping the level of work performed, or some combination of both. If achieved by delaying projects, a base reduction of $35 million per year would mean postponing work on 18 bridges and 122 miles of highway. After 5 years, a total of 90 bridges and 600 miles of highway would be awaiting improvements that would otherwise have been scheduled. If the reallocation were achieved by down-scoping work, it would mean reducing all pavement reconditioning and reconstruction projects on these routes to simple resurfacing. Currently 89 miles of higher level pavement treatments are accomplished each year. Delays and project down-scoping of this type would involve large costs for highway users. The reallocations discussed above would cause the costs to fall on users of the minor arterial and collectors systems. These costs would come in the form of decreased ride quality, decreased safety, weight restrictions on bridges, increased traffic delays, slower snow removal and less well maintained rest areas. The long term costs for preserving these routes would also increase and impact all highway users around the state. 22 WISCONSIN TRANSLINKS 21 FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT TRANSLINKS 21, CONTACT: MARK WOLFGRAM CHIEF, STATE HIGHWAY PROGRAM ANALYSIS WISCONSIN DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION PO BOX 7916 MADISON, WI 53707-7916 608/266-5791 FOR ADDITIONAL COPIES, CALL: OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, 608/266-3581
