What is a full depth reclamation (FDR)?

An FDR consists of removing all of the pavement on a street, correcting any poor soils below the pavement, and replacing with new pavement. This process usually happens in 7 steps as shown below.

  • Step 1: Remove the old pavement (reclaiming)
    • During this step, the entire depth of the pavement is ground up by a reclaiming machine. The ground up pavement is either graded and left on the street as new base material or is trucked back to the pavement plant to be recycled and used in future pavement. It generally takes a few hours to complete the reclaiming process (grinding up the pavement and grading the temporary driving surface) unless the street is very wide and/or a long segment of the street is being milled.
    • Generally, the street will remain open to traffic during the reclaiming process, but a flagging crew may be directing traffic around the construction operations. The street surface is safe to drive on when the grading of the reclaimed surface is complete. The finished reclaimed surface will resemble a gravel road but will be made of ground-up pavement instead of gravel.
  • Step 2: Replace curbs and drainage inlets that need replacement
    • After the reclaiming process is complete, the city's Public Works Department crews will replace any curbs that have sunk over time and are collecting water and/or any drainage inlets that are damaged or disintegrating. Replacing a drainage inlet takes up to a day to complete, and any concrete curb replacement takes about a week to cure before new pavement can be put down next to it. The street will be open during this work, but parking may be limited to allow for work crews to access the replacement sites.
  • Step 3: Replace any affected pedestrian curb ramps with ADA-compliant ramps
    • Due to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the City's ADA Transition Plan, all non-compliant pedestrian ramps that connect to a crosswalk that is affected by a Mill and Overlay project will be replaced with ramps that meet ADA requirements. Generally, pedestrian access to these ramps will be limited for a few days to remove the old ramp, regrade the ramp area, pour a new ramp, and let the concrete harden enough to walk on again. The streets will be open during this work, but flaggers or other traffic control may be present while the ramp construction is occurring.
  • Step 4: Regrade the roadway base
    • A day or two before the first layer of pavement is put down, the roadway base will be regraded to the elevation needed to support the new pavement. The streets will be open during this work, but flaggers or other traffic control may be present while the grading work is occurring.
  • Step 5: Pave the first layer of pavement
    • The first layer of pavement (about 1 ½" of pavement) will be put down on the graded base layer. The paving machine will be followed closely behind by a few rollers to compact the new pavement to provide a solid surface to drive on.
    • You won't be able to drive on the new pavement until the crews are done rolling the pavement, which can take a half-hour or so from the time the paver goes by. Flaggers will direct traffic around the paving operation until the rollers are finished working on the pavement.
  • Step 6: Adjust manhole covers
    • All manhole covers will be adjusted to match the final pavement surface. We will also replace the adjustment rings on all manhole structures. You will probably notice that the manhole covers will be sticking out of the ground at this time. That is on purpose because the manhole covers need to match the final pavement surface, which is about 1 ½" above the first layer of pavement. The streets are generally open to traffic during the adjusting operations, but flaggers or other traffic control may be needed during the adjustment construction activities.
  • Step 7: Pave the second layer of pavement
    • The final step of an FDR project is to actually pave the new street surface! Before the new pavement is put down, a layer of glue (called "tack") is applied to the street surface to stick the new pavement to the old pavement. It is ok to drive on the tacked street before paving, but please drive slowly to avoid any splatter of the tack on your car. It is really hard to remove tack from the outside of your car once it gets on there!
    • The paving machine follows a few minutes behind the tack truck and lays down a fresh batch of pavement. Rollers follow closely behind to compact the new pavement to provide a solid surface to drive on.
    • You won't be able to drive on the new pavement until the crews are done rolling the pavement, which can take a half-hour or so from the time the paver goes by. Flaggers will direct traffic around the paving operation until the rollers are finished working on the pavement.

Show All Answers

1. What is a full depth reclamation (FDR)?
2. Can I get in and out of my driveway while they are reclaiming or paving?
3. Why does the city do FDR projects?
4. Why not do these projects more often?
5. What types of streets are good candidates for FDR projects?
6. How is parking affected by FDR projects?
7. How are FDR projects paid for, and am I assessed for them?
8. Where and when is the city planning FDR projects?
9. How are seal coat projects paid for and am I assessed for them?
10. Where and when is the city planning seal coat projects?