Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, July 20, 1995                   TAG: 9507200042
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: A-10   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

POTHOLES

Now, instead of thinking of your reclining form gripping a cool one in the summer heat on the backyard deck, think of this fabric holding a thick layer of crushed stone, a layer of road pavement, your car, and you and your family riding in your car - plus all the other vehicles, passengers and freight that roll over the same stretch of road over years.

That fabric could smooth your ride in the years ahead.

Research led by a couple of Virginia Tech professors, and funded jointly by the state's Center for Innovative Technology, Department of Transportation and private industry, has found that such superstrong geotextiles under a roadway can keep roads in good shape longer and cut maintenance costs as much as $35,000 a mile over 20 years.

Why? Fewer potholes.

The Tech research found that the weight of traffic pushes the pavement aggregate, or crushed stone, down into the rain-softened soil below, weakening the pavement, which eventually cracks.

While geotextiles have been around for years, the Tech research is the first to show how effective they can be in extending the life of a roadway. After one year of monitoring a section of a newly built road in Bedford County, the answer, in a word, is "very." By keeping the aggregate from mixing into the soil, the layer of fabric can triple the life of the road.

The results already have boosted sales of geotextiles. A Richmond distributor reports a $2 million increase in sales this year, and has added 40 employees. It expects to see more growth as word spreads.

Such information not only helps businesses, but also makes it possible for local and state governments to build your everyday "dumb" roads in a smarter way. The potential for savings is obvious: The state spends almost $600 million a year on road maintenance and resurfacing.

Indirect savings include the reduced wear and tear on your car's tires and front-end alignment from all those potholes you don't hit on the highway. And the lower crabbiness factor among drivers. The value of that alone is unquantifiable - and immeasurable.