Experimental Short Continuously Reinforced Concrete Pavement Crack Pattern and Load Transfer Efficiency Across Cracks

As a proposed long-term pavement solution for bus stops and corridors in highly urbanized areas, four experimental short continuously reinforced concrete pavement (CRCP) sections with different percentages of longitudinal steel were built in São Paulo, Brazil. The pavement sections are only 50 meters long each, a short constructive length in comparison to traditional CRCP normally built as long as the concreting process allows. Technical literature indicates that CRCP performance depends mostly on its crack pattern. Usually, narrow crack spacing and large crack width are regarded as non-desirable. A two-year crack survey showed that the shorter length, and the consequential lack of anchorage, makes the experimental short CRCP crack pattern to be unlike the traditional CRCP one; section 1 did not present any cracks yet. The up to date crack mapping is presented in order to compare the crack spacing trough time with traditional CRCP crack spacing. Additionally, deflection tests were performed using a falling weight deflectometer (FWD) to measure the load transfer efficiency (LTE) across all cracks. The results show that the LTE values are adequate (above 90%) in all sections, despite its distinct crack pattern; and that steel percentage does not influence LTE.