Development of Crushed Quarry Aggregate Surfacing Specifications

South Dakota’s transportation system includes over 83,000 miles of roads of which about ten percent are state-controlled, and three percent are federal routes. The remaining 72,000 miles are mostly low-volume roads (LVR). A LVR is defined as a road that carries less than 400 vehicles per day. Typically, these roads fall under the jurisdiction of counties, townships, and municipalities. LVRs play an important role in the State’s economy by providing essential links not only between rural areas but also between rural and urban areas. A significant portion of LVRs in South Dakota are gravel. While South Dakota local governments are not bound by the State’s gravel surfacing specification, survey results from the SD2009-08 study entitled Gravel Surfacing Guidelines for South Dakota, revealed the majority of local government respondents use the State Gravel Surfacing specification. For some areas of the state, there is a shortage of “natural” gravel that will meet the Gravel Surfacing specification as per the 2015 SDDOT Standard Specifications for Roads and Bridges. This is due to the drying up of the state's “natural” gravel pits, which will only get worse over time. In addition to gravel supply concerns, rising costs and tightening budgets have encouraged local governments to consider and construct roads with alternate aggregate materials under a range of specifications. These include SDDOT Base Course specifications, local specifications, or no specifications at all. Local governments, in areas having nearby quarries, have installed aggregate surfacing using crushed quarry aggregate, which is defined as crushed limestone, quartzite, or granite. According to the local owners and SD Local Transportation Assistance Program (LTAP) personnel, several of these surfaces perform similarly to “natural” gravel surfacing. The fines in the material appear to have a binding quality that creates a firm roadway surface. Unfortunately, the criteria for defining a well-performing crushed quarry aggregate surfacing and the specifications associated with that performance have never been established. Currently, the only way to duplicate a well-performing crushed quarry aggregate surfacing is through trial and error. Through the development of criteria defining a well-performing aggregate surface and the establishment of the associated specific requirements for crushed quarry material, owners would be provided an alternative option to “natural” gravel surfacing that is readily duplicated and available.

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Active
• Funding: $129,995.00
• Sponsor Organizations:

  South Dakota Department of Transportation

  700 East Broadway Avenue
  Pierre, SD  United States  57501
• Managing Organizations:

  South Dakota Department of Transportation

  700 East Broadway Avenue
  Pierre, SD  United States  57501
• Project Managers:

  McDowell, Margo

• Performing Organizations:

  South Dakota State University, Brookings

  Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
  P.O. Box 2219
  Brookings, SD  United States  57007
• Principal Investigators:

  Ghabchi, Rouzbeh

• Start Date: 20250113
• Expected Completion Date: 20270131
• Actual Completion Date: 0

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Crushed aggregates; Gravel roads; Low volume roads; Specifications; Surfacing
• Geographic Terms: South Dakota
• Subject Areas: Construction; Highways; Materials;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01950454
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: South Dakota Department of Transportation
• Files: RIP, STATEDOT
• Created Date: Apr 1 2025 8:39AM