Road Construction FAQ

This page last updated October 31, 2020

Road construction is a subject that generates a lot of complaints and criticisms. Yes, construction is often inconvenient and frustrating, although sometimes it seems like many folks simply have a visceral reaction to the orange signs and barrels and perceive the amount of inconvenience to be much more than it really is. As with most things, there are two sides to the story, and this topic is no exception. Believe it or not, the city, county, and state and their contractors do work hard to minimize the amount of disruption as much as possible, and its in contractors' interest to get things done as quickly as possible. But some delays and inconvenience is inevitable-- that's just the reality of construction. Remember, "no pain, no gain."

Read on for answers and explanations to some frequent questions and complaints.

Why is there no work being done?
Perhaps one of the most common complaints uttered about road construction is that it seems like there's often not any work being done on a specific project. However, this is generally not the case. Oftentimes, there is work being done that you simply don't see, such as underground or nearby-but-out-of-view drainage or utility work, or work on a nearby section of the same project that must be completed first due to sequencing. That said, construction projects are very dynamic and there are times when work sites are dormant as the result of a number of legitimate circumstances:

• Inclement weather or its after-effects. Besides the obvious effects of rain, cold weather can also delay a project as asphalt and concrete often cannot be laid or poured in cold temperatures.
• Work cannot continue until concrete or pavement has cured.
• Some elements of the project need to be complete before others, which means that some sections inherently go dormant in the meantime.
  
• The contractor is waiting on a delayed utility adjustment or material delivery.
• An integral piece of equipment has broken-down and is awaiting repair.
  
• A required crew or piece of equipment is working another section of the project or a different project.
• Something was discovered on the work site that was unexpected that requires the contractor to wait while an engineering change is designed and approved.

Why does construction take so long?
The answer is pretty straight-forward: major road projects are extremely complex and require an incredible amount of work. And, while all that all work is going on, traffic still has to be able to reasonably move through the work zone. A good analogy would be to consider how long it would take to re-floor a room, then consider how long it would take to re-floor that room with the furniture still in it-- doing so substantially increases the time and effort it takes to get the job done. That's just reality.

As any project manager worth their salt will tell you, there are three options for completing any project: fast, good, and cheap; the catch is that you can only have two.

(Source: http://www.pyragraph.com/2013/05/good-fast-cheap-you-can-only-pick-two/)

Why is this road always under construction? / They just finished a project on this road and now they're starting another?
It seems like a lot of folks think that once a road is built, it will never need to be worked on again. But it should be obvious that’s not the case. After a decade or two, every road will need major maintenance—repaving, repairs, etc., and bridges need repairs or replacement every few decades. If traffic has increased, roads will need expanding or other operational improvements. And road design and engineering is constantly evolving and improving, so obsolete sections need to be upgraded over time for better safety or operation. For example, a freeway built fifty years ago looks and functions substantially differently than one built today—is it reasonable to expect that a 1970s-era or earlier highway would never be upgraded to modern standards?

Due to funding and resource availability as well as manageability, road work is often done in phases or sections. So in some cases, it seems like a specific road has always been under construction, but in reality, different sections have been under construction and completed at different times over the course of many years, sometimes back-to-back, but often with breaks in between. Over time, however, all of that blurs together in one's memory giving the illusion of constant construction.

Also, due to funding limitations, big projects often have to be done in phases. For example, the first phase of a major freeway interchange project might relocate and improve the frontage roads. Then, after that is completed, the next phase might be to build the first few flyovers of the interchange. Then the next phase might be to widen the freeways through the interchange. Then finally the remainder of the interchange flyovers would be built. These projects might be done back-to-back, or overlap a bit, or maybe have gaps between them depending on funding availability. While this causes the overarching project to be dragged-out longer than anyone would like, it's often the best way to get it done as waiting until the entire thing could be fully-funded would increase the overall cost as construction costs tend to increase over time.

Why don't contractors dedicate crews to projects?
Some folks assert that there is just one construction crew that cycles around to all the various projects and that this is the cause of the work sites going dormant. First of all, there are lots of contractors that do road work, so not every project is done by the same contractor, and each project usually has several subcontractors. Each contractor has their own crews, so there's obviously not just one construction crew for everything. While most contractors work multiple jobs and do usually shift workers around those various jobs as needed, for the most part, they do try to schedule their crews and subcontractors so that all of their projects are worked on in some form nearly continuously. To be sure, there may be cases where a needed crew may be working on one project and not be immediately available for another when that project is ready for them. When this happens, a contractor will often then try to do some other items on that project out-of-sequence with the crews they do have available if they can in order to keep the project progressing. It's actually in the contractor's financial interest to do so, not only to avoid delays that may result in penalties (see below), but also because they want to get the job completed so that they can move their crews and equipment on to the next paying job.

Why aren't projects worked-on 24 hours a day?
While work on a few mega-projects does continue around-the-clock (or nearly so), most projects simply can't do so as this would increase the labor costs of the project substantially. Since highway funding is already limited, spending more money on one job so it can be completed a few months faster means less funding is available for other needed projects. With the reluctance of the public (that's you) to accept higher taxes and/or tolls to pay for it, there are simply not enough resources to work every project around-the-clock. There has to be a really high cost/benefit ratio for a project to have 24-hour work.

Why aren't projects worked on at night?
Most major projects that require significant lane closures on heavily-traveled routes do have overnight work. Just because you see work being done during the day doesn't mean there also isn't work done at night. Some tasks, however, may not be done at night for safety, regulatory, or logistical reasons, or perhaps the site is near residential areas where night work might be to intrusive. And overnight work often has higher costs associated with it, which means that for many projects, the cost/benefit is just not there to justify it, and as mentioned in the previous topic, spending more money on one project leaves less money for other needed projects. Citizens generally want their government to be judicious in spending tax dollars, and this is an example of that.

Nighttime road work in San Antonio
(Source: TxDOT)

Why not finish one project before starting another?
If road construction was done one project at a time, it would take even longer to get things done. First of all, what would be the boundaries of the "one-project-at-a-time" zone? Would it be a specific road, an arbitrary section of a city or county, a whole city or county, a region of the state...? So for argument's sake, let's say it's by county. In Bexar County, there are typically 10 or so major highway projects underway at any given time with most major projects needing about three years to complete. Simple math shows that those 10 projects that could be done in three years concurrently would take about 30 years if done one at a time. And that doesn't include the dozens of smaller projects underway at any given time. There is simply no way to ever get all the needed congestion, safety, and maintenance improvements done on that kind of schedule. On top of all that, construction costs typically increase every year, so waiting to build projects just increases their cost.

Why don't they fine contractors who take too long to finish a project?
Actually, they do. Most construction contracts let by TxDOT, as well as by many other jurisdictions, include a timeline to complete major milestones as well as finish the project and a provision to assess some form of liquidated damages (i.e. a monetary penalty) if that timeline is not met. Also, most TxDOT contracts require the contractor to "rent" lanes by the hour to close them. Many projects also contain a bonus for early completion.

Why are manholes and storm drains higher than the road surface in construction areas?
During road widening or resurfacing projects, manholes, storm drains, gutters, and other concrete or iron works in construction zones are often several inches above the road surface. Additionally, the transition to other roadways and driveways also usually has a bump or lip, all making for a rough ride. Many people wonder why this is with some even believing it's some kind of mistake. 

However, the reason is quite simple: manholes, storm drains, driveway aprons, and so forth all are all built to the planned level of the final road surface. However, that final layer of pavement (usually a few inches worth) is not laid down until the very end of the project. Therefore, when a road is still under construction but open to traffic, there will be an offset between the temporary road surface and those other structures.

So why not lay down the final layer of pavement before letting traffic use the road? Essentially, it's the same reason why you don't put down carpet or flooring in a house that's still being built-- you don't want it to be damaged by the ongoing work. Also, traffic driving on the subsurface layers of pavement while it cures can cause it to settle and/or deform slightly, so it makes for a better final product to wait until the subsurface layers have settled and fully-cured before applying to top layer. That allows the top layer to smooth-out any imperfections that develop in the lower layers during that initial use.

So why not install the manholes and other structures at the lower level and raise them up during final paving? This is certainly possible, but would be expensive to do, especially given the short amount of time the grade offset is needed. It would be like putting a roof on the first story of a planned two-story house, then moving it to the top of the second story when it was done. Pretty dumb, huh?

For the record, this is not something that's only done in Texas. This is the practice pretty much everywhere in the US and even overseas (I've personally seen it in Germany and England.) In short, it's just how it's done. However, they typically try to minimize the danger and annoyance by building small asphalt ramps around these hazards to reduce the potential impact of hitting one. In the end, though, it's the driver's responsibility to avoid these hazards by being careful and observant and slowing down. 

Manhole above level of temporary road surface. The final road surface level
can be seen in the background.
(Source: https://www.iandimag.com/online_exclusives/2015/03/manhole_equipment_and_rehabilitation3)

Why didn't they expand this road years ago before the traffic got so bad?
This is answered in detail on the Why don't developers have to expand the roads first? page.

Other sites of interest

TxDOT San Antonio "Go Ahead!" - What’s the Hold-Up? Why the Best-Laid Plans Often Go Astray https://txdotsanantonio.blogspot.com/2020/08/whats-hold-up-why-best-laid-plans-often.html