Effect of Tire Configuration on the Performance of a Low-Volume Road Exposed to Heavy Axle Loads: Response Measurements

A series of response measurements was conducted at an instrumented low-volume road test site to determine the effects of different tire configurations of a heavy vehicle on the performance of the road structure. The test site road had a thin asphalt concrete surface, and the total thickness of its structural layers was about half a meter; the road rested on a silty subgrade. The response measurements with two axle loads, 80 kN and 100 kN, included recording of road surface deflection and vertical stresses at three depths below the road surface. The results indicated that the stresses inside the road structure were up to 30% higher when narrow types of single tires were used instead of normal dual tires. According to the employed distress models, this means a threefold to fourfold difference in the service life of the road.