Low volume roads comprise about 700 000 km of Australia's road network. Local roads play an important role in providing access to many local communities, tourist pursuits and contributing to the economic viability of the rural sector. They are predominately two-lane two-way roads. Most are unsealed while the remainder generally have a spray sealed surface. Obtaining suitable road pavement materials for the effective construction and maintenance of the road network is an ongoing challenge for local practitioners, as the better quality materials are become increasingly scarce or less accessible. Increasing use of readily available local materials, often of marginal quality, will be required to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the construction and maintenance of low volume roads. As part of the Department of Transport and Regional Services' (DOTARS) Low Volume Roads Technology program, ARRB has been commissioned to assist in the development of a toolkit for field testing of local road building materials. (a).
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