Asphalt shortage delays road repairs nationwide

[babylonsister]

Asphalt shortage delays road repairs nationwide
By MANUEL VALDES Associated Press Writer


Nov 9th, 2008 | SEATTLE -- Expect a bumpier drive. An asphalt shortage is delaying road maintenance projects in communities nationwide. Asphalt is becoming scarce as U.S. refiners overhaul their equipment to maximize output of highly profitable fuels such as diesel and gasoline, using inexpensive -- and hard to process -- crude oil.

To make things worse, refiners are also cutting back on the production of a petrochemical that many states mix into asphalt to make roads more durable.

Dozens of road repairs were delayed last summer and municipalities around the country may face another shortfall next summer. Road-maintenance projects that have gone forward cost significantly more as the price of asphalt nearly tripled over the past year.

The dearth of asphalt compounds the challenges states, counties and cities already face in fixing bridges, highways, local streets and other critical infrastructure at a time when budgets are squeezed by falling income, sales and real-estate tax revenues -- not to mention higher costs for fuel, steel and other raw materials.

more...

http://www.salon.com/wires/ap/business/2008/11/09/D94BK3V80_asphalt_shortage/index.html

[Arctic Dave]

1. Lining themselves up for more price gouging when we have

to start rebuilding our infrastructure.

[babylonsister]

2. Have you ever heard of using old tires to make road surfaces?

I seem to recall in Brooklyn years ago that that's what was being used and it seemed to work well. And what good are old tires? Maybe it's time to put them to use. There's enough of them around.

[Arctic Dave]

3. I think they still use them for making roads.

But petroleum products are still necessary for "binding" the materials together.

[Wiley50]

4. So whose ass fault is this?

Around here (we have an asphalt company down the road from us)

they recycle asphalt that they tear up when working on roads,

they have huge piles of it sitting around and they put it in the hopper and re-melt it.

I think they should harvest that huge area of flotsam plastic out in the pacific

between CA and Hawaii. There's enough of it out there to re-surface every road in the US