Apply this to parking lots, too

Looking for some insight into how various states are adjusting to the budget crunch? Check out a nice overview by Daniel C. Brown in the Spring 2009 issue of Asphalt published by the Asphalt Institute. "For the near term," Dan writes, "it looks like lowered budgets, reduced new construction, and an increased emphasis on pavement preservation are the orders of the day." It's the "increased emphasis on pavement preservation" that caught my eye. While many miles of state roads are undoubtedly past the point of no return, where preservation dollars spent would be preservation dollars wasted, an emphasis on preserving the existing pavement will enable states to improve road quality while extending pavement life and reducing life-cycle pavement costs. Maybe this means that pavement preservation will (or has) finally become the legitimate "construction" alternative it always should have been.