City Set To Try Out New "Portable Asphalt Plant On Wheels"
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Deep freeze means deep potholes on the streets of Pittsburgh.
About the only way to fill them is with cold patch asphalt, which doesn't last as long as hot asphalt.
Another problem with cold weather patching: you can fill your truck with hot asphalt at the plant, and by the time you get to the pothole site, it's frozen solid.
But Pittsburgh Chief Operating Officer Guy Costa says there could be an answer, down the road.
"A portable asphalt plant on wheels."
Costa says a hot asphalt truck will soon roll into Pittsburgh.
"It mixes the aggregate with liquid asphalt, heats it up to the temperature that you need, and then drops it down onto the roadway. And then you spread it onto the roadway to fill the potholes, and it's a permanent patch rather than a temporary patch. And another thing, it's a year round truck," says Costa.
A promotional video describes a revolutionary vehicle that brings the plant to the potholes.
Although it's been used in Europe, Pittsburgh will be the first American city to try it out.
Due to the high price tag, nearly $400,000, the city will lease it for three months.
"We're going to try it," Costa explains. "If it works, we get a new one. If not, we send it back."
If they like it, the city may get a five-year lease, with an option to buy. Costa says it could save money, in the long run.
"It's a one-time fix, rather than have to go back and fix it," he says.
The RoadMixer will be put to the test when it arrives in early February.
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