UDOT’s new asphalt mixture promises smoother, more pothole-free roads

ABC 4 By Derick Fox

Jun 27, 2024

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — The Utah Department of Transportation says it has started using a new mixture of asphalt that will help cut down on potholes on roads throughout the Beehive State.

The new asphalt blend, which UDOT calls HiMod high-density asphalt, uses a significantly higher ratio of polymers as binding “glue” than typically used in traditional asphalt mixes. The result? A thicker and stickier but more durable and weather-resistant asphalt mixture.

“This new mixture defies everything I studied about asphalt in school,” said UDOT asphalt engineer Howard Anderson. “But what I was taught in school was based on the binders of the past, before we had polymers. With stronger glue, it didn’t make sense to keep doing the same things we’ve always done with asphalt.”

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