Statemant of
David B. Carlson
President
Fred Carlson Company
Decorah, Iowa

On behalf of the
National Asphalt Pavement Association

Before the
Committee on Environment and Public Works
United States Senate

On the
Reauthorization of the Federal Surface Transportation Research Program

March 15, 2002

Thank you for providing this forum and allowing the National Asphalt Pavement Association an opportunity to present testimony before the Committee on Environment and Public Works on a critically important topic: the reauthorization of the surface transportation research program.

I am here today representing the National Asphalt Pavement Association (NAPA). NAPA represents the Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) producers in Washington. NAPA supports an active research program designed to improve the quality of HMA pavements and paving techniques used in the construction of roads, streets, highways, parking lots, airports, and environmental and recreational facilities.

In short Mr. Chairman, NAPA recommends Congress authorize a multi-year Asphalt Pavement Research and Technology Program, managed by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) with oversight and input from members of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) and the Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) industry.

Why HMA Research Matters

The nation's surface transportation system consists of 3.9 million miles of roads, of which approximately 94 percent is paved with Hot Mix Asphalt. The age of the nation's highways dictate the need for rehabilitation in order to continue the smooth flow of goods and services.

On the surface, today's discussion is on the state of the nation's highway system. On a deeper level, we are talking about the future of our nation's economy and well-being and how our surface transportation infrastructure will meet the demands of the 21st Century. The efficient transportation of goods and services - from one end of the country to the other - is fundamental to our national economy. A vibrant national economy is fundamental to our ability to fund national defense, provide good schools, take care of our citizens, and improve the quality of life.

Our national highway system, established by an Act of Congress in 1956, has now reached maturity. President Eisenhower would be astonished to learn that 45 years later, the national highway system would carry 200 million passenger vehicles and 3.4 million trucks and buses. Who would have guessed back then that nearly three-fourths of the goods produced in the U.S. each year would be transported by trucks on the national highway system?

Even now, highway freight traffic has not reached its apex. With the North American Free Trade Agreement and more sophisticated approaches to just-in-time manufacturing, the volume of freight transported over highways is expected to double in volume over the next twenty years. This trend will maintain three decades of growth, as vehicle miles traveled increased 143 percent and vehicle miles traveled logged by trucks in particular increased 225 percent. Yet, over the same period, miles of roadways increased only 6 percent.

These divergent factors have led to serious congestion on the nation's highways. Many roads are handling more vehicles than the pavements were designed to handle. The results of highway congestion are often tragic, with more than 40,000 deaths and 3 million injuries resulting from traffic accidents. The fact is that our national highway system is outdated and breaking down from over use. Unless we plan effectively and use our highway dollars wisely, there is a real potential for an increase in the number of highway deaths.

Mr. Chairman, there is clearly a need to increase federal funding to prevent the deterioration of our road system and provide for growing needs. In addition, NAPA strongly believes that there is a fundamental need to invest in research and development. Funding a focused, multi-year national research program would pay huge dividends to the public, resulting in highways that are safer and environmentally friendly, designed for perpetual use, and repair projects that are quick and reduce traffic congestion.

The public has every right to know they are investing their dollars on the most durable, cost effective, and environmentally friendly materials available. Research and development into new pavement technologies makes good sense and will enable all Americans to reap the best benefit from the nearly $32 billion the federal government alone invests in highways, of which 54 percent is spent on pavements.

The HMA industry appreciates the benefits of research. Through the NAPA Research and Education Foundation, we have raised over ten million dollars to help fund a new, state-of-the-art research center near the campus of Auburn University in Alabama. The National Center for Asphalt Technology (NCAT) is internationally recognized for its lab facilities and a 1.7-mile test track used to measure the quality of HMA pavement from states around the country.

NAPA's member companies are also engaged in research at their labs and through their respective state universities. However, a federally focused program can yield huge advances and innovations not possible through locally driven and funded HMA research.

Past Federal Research Success

The federal government used to have a robust HMA highway research program. In the 1980's the Strategic Transportation Research Study identified pavements as the most important research area, setting the stage for the Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP). From 1987 to 1992, SHRP developed the Superpave system for asphalt binders and mixtures.

In the years following SHRP, the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) provided the opportunity to implement Superpave and conduct limited research under the Federal Highway Administration and the National Cooperative Highway Research Program. The success of Superpave can be measured by the fact that all but two states have switched from their old ways of specifying asphalt binders to the Superpave method. More than 80 percent of all asphalt mixture tonnage specified by states in 2001 was designed by using the Superpave system. In the highway field, this is considered a tremendous success in research implementation by virtue that the adoption occurred so rapidly, and that it was so widespread.

Challenge Presented by TEA-21

The ground shifted for pavement research when the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21) was enacted into law. Under TEA-21, Congress dramatically reduced funding for the national research program. At the same time, research funds for individual states were increased.

As the players and their roles in HMA pavement research changed, so did the focus. States, suddenly flush with new research dollars, conducted a wide variety of pavement research to address specific local issues and needs. Long-term basic HMA research funding dried up as the federal role was fiscally constrained. Most of the research funding designated for use by FHWA was earmarked for specific institutions, with no nationally driven strategic direction.

Moreover, total investment in highway research has not kept pace with other industries of national importance. For example, spending on highway research and development (R&D) programs now accounts for a paltry five-tenths of one percent. By comparison, federal R&D investment in health care is ten times that of transportation. This under-investment makes it difficult to attract the best minds to work on solving transportation issues and leads to insufficient development of intellectual capital in agencies and universities.

Future Direction

As with other industries of national importance, highway research is an on-going need. Exciting opportunities exist to improve pavement performance, develop better methods of maintenance and rehabilitation, and optimize resources through recycling and speed of construction.

The HMA industry believes a new approach to designing highways is needed that takes into consideration not just the thickness of the pavement, but the combination of materials used to construct an optimal pavement structure - a perpetual pavement.

A perpetual pavement is defined as an asphalt pavement designed to last longer than 50 years without requiring reconstruction, only occasional surface renewal. Examples of long-lived HMA pavement exist around the country. However, our industry believes through a nationally-focused program, perpetual pavement would be the rule, not the exception. Many state departments of transportation and the FHWA share this vision.

Criteria need to be developed so that the selection, design, and construction of perpetual pavements become a conscious process. Work has already begun in Illinois, California, Kentucky, Texas, Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, the United Kingdom, and France. A federally funded and managed HMA research program could develop the very tools highway designers and contractors need to build perpetual pavements.

In focusing on perpetual asphalt pavements, other benefits of HMA coincide. For instance, HMA pavements are quiet and smooth pavements, providing an added value for the environment and riding comfort of the traveling public. NAPA has expertise and knowledge to work with FHWA to design a research program capable of leading us to new highway pavement designs that will accomplish the Committee goals of improving research.

Research Priorities

Under direction by Congress, the Transportation Research Board (TRB) recently published a study, Strategic Highway Research: Saving Lives, Reducing Congestion, Improving Quality of Life (Special Report 260) identifying the research priorities for highway research in four areas:

• Accelerating the renewal of America's highways.
• Improving highway safety.
• Providing a highway system with reliable travel times.
• Providing highway capacity in support of the nation's economic, environmental and social goals.

HMA pavements play a critical role in each of these four high-priority areas. New HMA pavement technologies, beyond those envisioned in the TRB report, will be needed if our industry is to provide safer, more durable pavements that meet the growing capacity demands required by American people and businesses.

New and improved pavement technologies and materials can also achieve significant long-term cost savings. The total replacement value of the nation's highways and bridges is estimated to be as much as $3 trillion. If research could improve the performance and durability of roads and bridges by just one percent, the direct savings would total billions of dollars.

Recommendation

NAPA supports the research objectives identified in the TRB study. The nation's existing multi-billion dollar highway system must be protected, and more effective pavement technologies must be developed through a strong national research program.

NAPA believes this could best be achieved by Congress authorizing and funding an Asphalt Pavement Research and Technology (APRT) Program in the next transportation reauthorization bill. Furthermore, NAPA believes the Federal Highway Administration is best suited to manage the APRT program with oversight that includes AASHTO and the HMA industry as equal partners.

The APRT program should be funded at $25 million annually and focus on fundamental, long-term research aimed at achieving breakthroughs in our understanding of HMA pavement materials, design, and performance. Such research should also be aimed at addressing research gaps not addressed in other highway R&T programs, as well as emerging issues with national implications. Furthermore, a research structure managed within FHWA is the best way to administer a Hot Mix Asphalt Pavement Research and Technology Program.

In order to ensure the APRT program is responsive to the major stakeholders in highway innovation, the oversight structure should include an executive committee consisting of HMA pavement experts from FHWA, state departments of transportation, and the HMA industry, each having an equal voice. The executive committee would provide oversight and input in support of an APRT program. Research advisory committees would be formed to guide research projects and consider research-initiated studies.

Models already exist from other agencies such as the Department of Health and Human Services (National Institutes of Health) for the establishment of research advisory committees and research initiation. (See 30 U.S.C. Chapter 22, Section 812). This type of innovative management would serve the APRT program well.

The performance of HMA pavements is directly linked to the health of the transportation system. The transportation system's importance to the economic security and military readiness is immeasurable. Research in HMA is vital to the continued functioning of this system. Continuing innovation in the area of pavements delivered through a strong national highway research and technology (R&T) program will improve the effectiveness of the nation's highway system and ensure the users' return on their investment is maximized.

Thank you.