The Way We Were
Asphalt paving has been the surfacing of choice in road construction for the last 100 years. Like most technology, it has seen vast improvements in functionality, efficiency and ergonomics over time. Also like most technology, the greatest strides have taken place within the last decade, with even more stunning advancements right around the corner.
It hasn’ t been that long since site preparation was done with a transit and a plumb bob, asphalt removal was accomplished with a walk-behind road saw and operators sat on hot, bodyrattling, smelly machines for hours on end. But it got the job done for decades because it was cutting-edge technology at the time. Small incremental improvements were made over the years, especially after World War II when the Marshall system of mix designs was introduced. As modern traffic continued to put a
April 2025 • www. thepartsconnection. org • 19