How long will my parking lot last?

Answer: Architects generally design parking lots to last for 20 – 25 years. A good average is 20 years. Unfortunately, designs on paper and actual conditions in the field can vary quite significantly, and since the parking lot tends to be the last item of a construction project, and is obviously less structurally important than the building itself, corners can be cut leading to significant decreases in the parking lots useful life. A site inspection is required to assess the remaining useful life of any particular parking lot.

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When budgeting for parking lot repair and maintenance, what general guidelines should be followed?

Answer: The answer depends on the current state of your parking lot. If the lot was well constructed and is not showing significant sub-base failures (more than 5% of the lot) then the best option usually is to start a maintenance and seal coating program. This involves filling cracks, cutting out and replacing severely deteriorated areas with full depth asphalt, seal coating with 2 coats of a good cold tar sealer, and restriping. This should be done every 3 – 5 years, depending upon how much traffic your lot has. You will find that over time, the amount of patch work (which is the most costly component) will go down.

For lots that are not structurally sound, your best bet is to have a complete pavement analysis done. Sometimes the only flaw is that too thin of a layer of asphalt was put over a good sub-base. In this case, patching and overlay is a viable option.

If subsurface water is a problem, then drains may need to be installed prior to the overlay.

There is no "one solution" for repairing every parking lot. Pavement Management estimators look at each lot on its own merits and make recommendations for your particular situation. That’s why its important to deal with a full service company that does all aspects of pavement repair maintenance. Most other companies do not offer the full range of services that Pavement Management does.

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What are the most significant contributors to pavement deterioration?

Answer: There are many factors that lead to premature asphalt pavement deterioration. In no specific order deterioration factors can include:

• Original construction quality.
• Heavy loads placed upon the pavement (a fully loaded tractor-trailer or trash truck exerts as much deteriorating force on a pavement as 10,000 cars).
• Petroleum spills - Since asphalt is an oil based material, any oil based product that is spilled upon it will dissolve the cement that bonds the asphalt together and cause premature failures.
• Cracks - Asphalt is a flexible pavement and cracks are a natural part of the aging process. Left unfilled, these cracks will allow water penetration into the sub-base which will prematurely cause pot holes and other types of extensive pavement failure.

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How can I figure out how many parking spaces can fit in my parking lot? How many of those have to be handicapped?

Answer:  A typical parking space is 8 to 9 feet (2.4-2.75 m) wide by 16 to 18 feet (4.9-5.5 m) long. Based on the size of the parking lot depends how many spaces your lot will need.

The Americans with Disabilities Act is a federal mandate for handicap parking space requirements at buildings open to the public. This federal legislation was passed in part due to inconsistencies in handicap parking requirements by local jurisdictions. The federal guidelines are as follows:

I. Number of accessible parking spaces required for commercial properties, open to the public

# of Spaces on Lot	1- 25	26- 50	51- 75	76- 100	101- 150	151- 200	201- 300	301- 400	401- 500	501- 1000	1001 & Over
Minimum # of Accessible Spaces Required	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	2% of total	20 plus for each 100
Of those, the # Required to be Van Accessible	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	2	1 in every 8 accessible spaces	1 in every 8 accessible spaces over 1000

II. Layout

Accessible space – 8’ with 5’ hashout on left side, Two spaces can share a hashout.
Van Accessible - 8’ space with 8’ hashout on right side

III. Signage

Accessible - Regular handicapped sign – Reserved parking and universal logo in center of each sign. Bottom of sign must be between 4’ and 7’ above pavement surface.

Van Accessible - Same as above, except that the words “VAN ACCESSIBLE” shall be printed below the logo.

What is the best time of the year to have repairs and maintenance performed on my parking lot?

Answer: Parking lot repair work must be performed outdoors so the biggest factor in when to perform the work is the outside temperature. Of course, the best time to perform this work is in optimal weather conditions, from the beginning of April thru the end of December. Specifically, however:

• Asphalt patching can be successfully performed from March 15th thru December 15th.
• Seal coating should be done between April 15th and October 15th.
• Complete repaving should be done between April 15th and October 31st.
• Striping should be done between March 15th and December 15th, but can be done during the winter if the conditions are dry and above freezing.
• Crack sealing can be done 12 months a year as long as the pavement is dry.

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