(A) General requirements. Minimum requirements for street construction shall be according to the state’s Department of Transportation Standard Specifications, current edition, hereafter referred to as the Standard Specifications, unless otherwise required by this chapter. Copies of said Standard Specifications are on file in the office of the town’s Zoning Administrator.
(B) Preparation of sub-grade for street pavements.
(1) After all earth work is substantially complete and all drains installed, the sub-grade shall be brought to the lines and grades shown on the plans or as may be otherwise approved according to these standards. Such portions shall be known as “sub-grades”.
(2) Unless otherwise provided, the upper six inches of all sub-grade shall be uniformly compacted to at least 95% standard density as determined by the provisions of AASHO, T99, Compaction and Density of Soils. During sub-grade preparation and after its completion, adequate drainage shall be provided at all times to prevent water from standing on the sub-grade. Sub-grades shall be so constructed that it will have nearly uniform density throughout. After compaction and final grading, the sub-grade shall be finished with a three-wheel roller weighing not less than ten tons. At areas not accessible to the roller, the required compaction shall be obtained with mechanical tamps or vibrators.
(3) All soft yielding or otherwise unsuitable material that will not compact properly shall be removed. All rock encountered shall either be removed or broken off to conform with the required cross section. Any holes or depressions resulting from the removal of such unsuitable material shall be filled with satisfactory material and compacted to conform with the surrounding sub-grade surface. No placement of pavement shall be permitted on uninspected or unapproved sub-grade and at no time when the sub-grade is frozen or muddy. No hauling shall be done nor equipment moved over the sub-grade when its condition is such that undue distortion results. If these conditions are present, the sub-grade shall be protected with adequate plank runways, mats or other satisfactory means if hauling is done thereon. The sub-grade shall be prepared sufficiently in advance to permit proper inspection so that the final elevation may be checked with a scratch inspection so that the final elevation may be checked with a scratch template and compaction checked. All utility excavations under the pavement shall be backfilled with Grade “B” borrow and construction shall conform to § 211 of the Standard Specifications or compacted thoroughly by other means. These locations shall be shown on the construction drawings as submitted to the Commission.
(C) Rigid (plain concrete) pavement construction.
(1) At the time of placement of the concrete, the subgrade shall be properly dampened just before the placement where it has become dry, where the surface has been removed by final grading or for any other reason it has not been properly dampened. Plain cement pavement shall be according to § 501 of the Standard Specifications or any subsequent amendments thereto.
(2) Materials shall comply with requirements of the Standard Specifications. Minimum cement content shall be six bags per cubic yard of concrete mixture. No cement reduction below the minimum shall be allowed for admixtures to increase workability or control setting time. Concrete shall be finished by machine or vibratory screed, except on widened portions, intersections or other places where hand finishing will be permitted.
(3) Weakened plane or dummy, transverse, contraction joints shall be placed not to exceed 20-foot spacing. Closer spacing to average 15 feet will be encouraged. Transverse contraction joints may either be formed or sawed dummy grove, ribbon or premolded strip type, and shall be one-fourth the pavement depth.
(4) When transverse joints are to be formed by sawing, care must be taken to saw the grooves soon after placing the concrete to prevent the formation of cracks due to contraction of the slab. All transverse joints shall be sawed within eight hours after the placing of the concrete unless authorization is given for sawing later. One of the above named joints shall be placed at every catch basin and manhole in line of pavement. The location of manholes and the like in the pavement shall determine the exact location of the joints. All joints shall extend throughout curbs to full width of pavement.
(5) Transverse expansion joints shall be placed at tee intersections and wherever else shown on the plans.
(6) Transverse joints will be formed by sawing or by constructing a slot or groove, as herein described, for dummy construction joints, or by a deformed key plate installed before the depositing of the concrete.
(7) Curing with white membrane curing compound AASHO Number type 2 - M - 14B shall be properly applied to give complete coverage.
(D) Flexible pavement construction.
(1) Pavement shall be constructed according to the requirements of § 401 of the Standard Specifications. Pavement shall be full depth hot asphaltic concrete unless otherwise approved by the Commission on the recommendation of the Town Engineer.
(2) Where the Commission allows collector streets or local streets to be constructed with compacted aggregate base, the base shall be placed on the prepared subgrade, compacted, primed and covered with binder before being contaminated by construction traffic.
(3) Materials and construction procedures shall comply with the requirements of §§ 303 and 403 of the Standard Specifications.
(2004 Code, § 4-410)