Overview and Comparison of the New Belgian Standard Specifications For Concrete Roads

Belgium is made up of 3 regions: the Region of Flanders, the Walloon Region and the Brussels Capital Region. Managing and maintaining the national trunk roads is a regional matter and therefore also carried out in Belgium by three different administrative authorities. Each of these administrative authorities has drawn up its own standard specifications: - the “Standaardbestek 250” standard specification in Flanders which appeared for the first time at the end of 1996, which was first updated in 1998 and updated for a second time in 2000; - the “RW 99” standard specification which has operated in the Walloon Region since 1999 - the “TB 2000” standard specification in Brussels which has been applied since the beginning of 2001. This paper offers an oversight and comparison of the technical specifications for cement-concrete paving in Belgium. The items dealt with are: - basic design requirements - sub-base materials - joints (transverse contraction joints, transverse expansion joints and longitudinal joints) - continuous reinforcement - cement - and concrete.