A new ASTM standard will help support and evaluate the durability, appearance and visibility of pavement markings. The standard (ASTM D7942, Specification for Thermoplastic Pavement Markings in Non Snow Plow Areas) will be used to install thermoplastic pavement markings as well as to confirm their conformance to desired field performance properties.
Painted lines that mark lanes for drivers have been around for nearly as long as cars have. ASTM member Jerry Britt, a technical manager at Ennis-Flint, says that standards for thermoplastic pavement marking materials have historically focused on chemical, compositional and physical properties. However, transportation officials now want a new standard that emphasizes performance criteria for pavement markings that are in service.
“The in-service criteria for pavement markings that are considered critical are durability, as defined by the presence of the marking, daytime and nighttime color and appearance, and nighttime visibility as defined by retroreflectivity,” says Britt. “This new standard addresses these criteria, creates minimum performance standards and recommends test methods to ensure compliance.”
According to Britt, the new standard will benefit drivers by ensuring that more pavement markings are highly visible at any time of day and night on medium-to-high traffic motorways over a period of several years. Notably, conformance to the standard could in some cases reduce the need for frequent maintenance restriping, which will save both money and the traffic congestion caused by such operations.
Primary users of ASTM 7942 will be state departments of transportation, city and county agencies, and toll road authorities.
In addition, the subcommittee that developed this standard (D04.38 on Highway Traffic Control Materials) plans to use it as the basis for a future standard that will cover all types of traffic marking materials, not restricted to thermoplastic pavement markings.
All interested parties are invited to join in D04.38’s standards developing activities.
To purchase standards, visit www.astm.org and search by the standard designation, or contact ASTM Customer Relations (tel +1.877.909.ASTM; sales@astm.org). ASTM welcomes participation in the development of its standards. Become a member at www.astm.org/JOIN.
For more news in this sector, visit www.astm.org/sn-transportation or follow us on Twitter @ASTMTransport.
ASTM Committee D04 on Road and Pavement Material Next Meeting: June 16-18, 2015, June Committee Week, Anaheim, Calif.
Technical Contact: Jerry Britt, Ennis-Flint, Wesson, Miss., tel +1.601.757.7008; jerry@ennistraffic.com
ASTM Staff Contact: Ashley Wiand, tel +1.610.832.9551; awiand@astm.org
ASTM PR Contact: Nathan Osburn, tel +1.610.832.9603; nosburn@astm.org
Release #9762