Time-History Performance of Reference Surfaces

The paper describes briefly the construction of reference surfaces for use in skid trailer correlation at the Field Test and Evaluation Center for Eastern States and discusses in detail the performance of two of these surfaces over a nine-year period. The seasonal variation in skid number widely reported for pavement surfaces in service is clearly observed in these surfaces subjected to only test traffic. One of the surfaces having an epoxy cement overspray applied at the time of construction has retained essentially the same level of skid resistance throughout the nine years; the other, without the overspray, has experienced a continuing decrease in skid resistance. It is concluded that overspraying a surface with a wear-resistant membrane, which inhibits both loss and polishing of the surface aggregate, may result in a test pad, which will maintain its original skid number for a long period of time.