Local roads get upgrades

In the coming months, two city streets are scheduled to be resurfaced in an innovative new green road construction effort that is expected to take thousands of used tires out of the waste stream.

Excel Paving Company will use the new surfacing technology in two projects: Second Street downtown between Spring Road and Moorpark Avenue, and the entire stretch of Tierra Rejada Road from Los Angeles Avenue to just east of the 23 Freeway.

The existing pavement will be ground down and a new rubberized asphalt surface installed. The project will begin on Oct. 22, with most of the grinding and paving occurring between Oct. 29 and Dec. 15. The new lane lines will be installed and the project completed by the end of January 2008.

During construction the road will be reduced to one land of traffic in each direction between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Access to side streets, businesses and residences will be maintained throughout the project. The city appreciates the community's patience and safe driving during this time.

The Moorpark Redevelopment Agency is partnering with the city by paying for the new pavement on Second Street, as this roadway is within the agency's project area.

"Pavement rehabilitation is a key component of the Moorpark Redevelopment Agency's implementation plan," said Hugh Riley, agency assistant executive director.

In the last year, Moorpark has become a local leader in the growing effort to use rubberized asphalt. Adding rubber from groundup tires to asphalt pavement can improvement performance and help the surface last longer. Potential benefits include longer life, resistance to rutting and cracking, reduced road noise and reduced maintenance cost.

In addition, used tires have been a major component in many dumps. Tires are bulky and require a large amount of landfill space. Rubberized asphalt paving has a potential recycling advantage of up to 2,000 tires used for each resurfaced highway lane mile.

"The city of Moorpark is committed to supporting environmentally sound practices in our work," said Yugal Lall, city engineer and Public Works director. "The City Council has directed us set a tone for roadbuilding efforts in the city and help pull thousands of tons of waste out of our landfill stream and put them to productive use."

For more information, call Dave Klotzle, assistant city engineer in the Moorpark Public Works Department at (805) 517-6285 or e-mail dklotzle @ci.moorpark.ca.us.