Designing and building streets
Facts on street construction and repair
How do we decide which streets will be paved?
Every few years the City of Vancouver hires a company that uses specialized equipment to assess the condition of our arterial streets from the quality of the surface asphalt to the health of the roadbed. Each arterial street is ranked in terms of its overall condition.
At first glance, the answer may seem easy — pave the worst first, right? We have actually found that we can deliver better value for your tax dollar if we focus on maintenance rather than full re-construction. A road's life span is based on the condition of the pavement and the road bed. By focusing on the maintenance of the pavement we can extend the life of the road bed. Since it is far more expensive to re-build the entire road than it is to simply re-pave the top few inches, we can deliver more for your money by focusing on this kind of maintenance. Bridges and sidewalks are maintained in a similar fashion.
Of course some roads simply need re-building. These are done on an as needed basis.
Which roads are being re-paved this year?
The Road Ahead website has an up-to-date list of roads under construction.
Who pays?
The construction and maintenance of Vancouver's arterial streets is paid for by property taxes.
Recognizing that some major routes are used, and therefore worn, by commuter and other inter-city traffic, the regional transportation authority, TransLink, has taken responsibility for funding the maintenance and construction of these routes. A number of Vancouver's arterial streets are included in this network of roads called the Major Road Network. The City administers the daily functioning and maintenance of these roads, however TransLink funds any work that needs to be done to keep these roads in good shape.
With this new cost share approach with TransLink, the City of Vancouver has enjoyed a sharp increase in the amount of roads paved per year since 2000.
How long can a road last and how is it re-paved?
Arterial roads are usually made up of an asphalt surface and a concrete or aggregate base. A newly asphalted arterial road surface typically has a life span of 15-30 years. When weather conditions and regular wear-and-tear cause cracks and holes to appear in the road, the City repairs them.
Inspectors and engineers periodically look at the road's condition and perform tests to determine if it needs a new surface. If the road is in good shape, no work will be done; however, if the asphalt is in poor condition, the City will repair or replace the asphalt surface. If a road in disrepair is neglected, deterioration can continue right through to the base of the road. Reconstruction for a arterial road in this condition usually costs about five times the amount of simply repairing top asphalt surface of the road. Usually a road base in the City can last well over 50 years if preventative measures such as resurfacing are done periodically. Otherwise, if neglected, a road's base might last only 15-30 years.
Did you know the city has its own asphalt plant?
Excavated concrete and asphalt used to be trucked to the landfill, but the asphalt plant allows the city to incorporate recycled asphalts, aggregates and concrete into new asphalts for roads, tennis courts, and laneways. Watch a video and learn about the asphalt plant and how asphalt get recycled.
Arterial street maintenance and construction
The Vancouver Transportation Plan (1997) classifies major streets in Vancouver as either collectors, primary arterials, or secondary arterials.
Vancouver's primary arterial streets are those streets that carry a large volume of traffic across the city, or from neighbourhood to neighbourhood. An example of a primary arterial street is Cambie St. Local streets carry less traffic volume and are typically used by traffic accessing a specific area.
Sample street cross-section
The cross section below shows a sample road section and some typical utilities that can be found under the streets in the City. The location of utilities can vary depending on the area.
