Year
2016
Client
RForestry Trunk Road, AB
Canada
Overview
A forestry trunk road in the MD of Greenview near Bezanson, Alberta was well known for its poor condition and ride quality. Large volumes of logging and oilfield service trucks utilizing the road created deep ruts. As the oilfield and forestry activity continued to grow, the road saw excessive loading far beyond its original capability. This road also included a 100m section of steep incline known as Simonette Hill. With more than 25 years of heavy usage, hundreds of thousands of dollars were spent annually on multiple and chronic rebuilds. The MD of Greenview sought a solution that would meet their economic needs as well as the growing transportation demands on the district. This project delivered: •Decreased capital and long-term operating costs •Eliminated downtime from repeated road closures
Year
2016
Client
Forestry Trunk Road, AB
Canada
Overview
A forestry trunk road in the MD of Greenview near Bezanson, Alberta was well known for its poor condition and ride quality. Large volumes of logging and oilfield service trucks utilizing the road created deep ruts. As the oilfield and forestry activity continued to grow, the road saw excessive loading far beyond its original capability. This road also included a 100m section of steep incline known as Simonette Hill. With more than 25 years of heavy usage, hundreds of thousands of dollars were spent annually on multiple and chronic rebuilds. The MD of Greenview sought a solution that would meet their economic needs as well as the growing transportation demands on the district. This project delivered: •Decreased capital and long-term operating costs •Eliminated downtime from repeated road closures
Challenges
Paradox’s patented Tough Cell solution was the most suitable technology for reinforcing the ground on this site. Tough Cell met all requirements specified by the MD of Greenview , including (but not limited to):
Unstable Terrain
Transportation Cost
Locally available gravel pit screenings were used as infill instead of trucking in costly gravel infill.
All-season access to client sites
Stabilizing poor soil subgrade and building long-lasting roads with increased bearing capacity for heavy equipment and high use, ensuring access for large volumes of logging and oilfield service trucks heavy industrial equipment traffic without road closures.
Approach
For the past 25 years, an existing Forestry Trunk Road came under increasingly heavy use, experiencing 20-30 passes per hour per day of logging and oilfield service vehicles, such as Fluid Super B’s, in addition to highway legal loads. The route includes a 10% inclined section. The clay substrate beneath the original road displayed poor compaction and was unable to support the traffic load generated by the growth of area industry. The MD of Greenview sought a solution to chronic rebuilding efforts costing hundreds of thousands of dollars annually to repair various sections of this road. The District, having sustained multiple rebuilds of this road in the past, wanted viable proof of a sustainable solution. A test site was ordered at km 60 marker of the road, to prove the viability of Tough Cell® geocell solution for permanent repair of the road and the 100m-long inclined section of Simonette Hill. With the test section satisfactorily concluded, work proceeded on the entire 1.2 km of the affected section including the hill.
Benefits & Advantages
Advantages
•Reduces the settlement of ballast materials and fouling by subgrade attrition.
•Is particularly effective for building over muskeg and other poor soil subgrades.
•Can be installed year-round in a timely manner, regardless of the season or weather.
•Supporting multi-directional confinement, Tough Cell enlarges the influence zone to 50-200mm, above and below cell height. Tough Cells can cover load support reinforcement and areas where water and drainage capabilities need to be considered.
Benefits
•Proven engineering solution that offers the only viable, long-term alternative to traditional road construction.
•Provides increased bearing capacity and longevity for roads with heavy track demands.
•Minimizes the import and quantity of aggregate, and therefore transportation costs, by utilizing locally available sand, recycled concrete and asphalt, and/or other materials.
•Reduces future maintenance and C02 emissions.
•Decrease or avoid transportation costs by being able to build over muskeg and wet conditions.
•Supports a natural vegetation growth environment through erosion control and slope protection, in comparison to other geotechnical solutions
Results
The site is now much more user-friendly, with a flat surface for snow removal in the winter and a sturdy sidewalk that decreases mud tracking into the office in the summer.
When you work with Paradox, you get more than just access to the places your business needs to be. You get peace of mind knowing that any obstacle along the way will be overcome with stable, dependable solutions to keep your project moving.
Reduces future maintenance and C02 emissions.
Increased bearing capacity and longevity for roads with heavy track demands.
Increased bearing capacity and longevity for roads with heavy track demands.
The MD of Greenview saw not only initial cost savings in construction but reduced long-term maintenance costs of this roadway. The time-responsive installation of Tough Cell® eased inconvenience during construction. Going forward, elimination of regularly occurring downtime on the road will mean significant dollars per year not lost to road closures for the district – dollars that can be redirected to other pressing needs within the District.