WWW.ACPA.ORG 15 SPRING // 2024 continues on page 16 » RETHINKING AND REPAVING Rethinking and Repaving a Model Roadside Rest Area A version of this article was authored by Mark Gudenas, Southwest Concrete Pavement Association and Kristin Dispenza, Senior Account Manager, Advancing Organizational Excellence and published in Roads & Bridges magazine as “Rest Area Ahead,” January 2024. CALTRANS’ MODERNIZATION OF HIGHWAY REST STOPS IN CALIFORNIA REPRESENTS A BIG STEP FORWARD IN SUSTAINABILITY, WITH THE JOHN “CHUCK” (J.C.) ERRECA SAFETY ROADSIDE REST AREA SERVING AS A MODEL FOR THE FUTURE. Low-power demand, low-water usage and long-life concrete pavement are key features that work together to achieve sustainability goals. Safety roadside rest areas (SRRA) were first addressed on a national scale in the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956, the same act that outlined funding for the Interstate Highway System itself. The Highway Beautification Act of 1965 spurred further investment, and by the end of the 1970s, SRRAs were a reliable convenience along most major highways. Fifty years later, many rest areas built in the ‘70s are at an age where they require substantial upgrades. But updating an SRRA means much more than just giving it a facelift. In California, it means complying with requirements set forth by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Division of Occupational Safety and Health Administration (Cal/OSHA) and the California Green Building Standards Code Part 11, Title 24, California Code of Regulations (CALGreen). Amenities recently constructed as part of the John “Chuck” Erreca Rest Area Replacement Project, located on Interstate 5 (I-5) approximately 20 miles south of Santa Nella, California, conform to all regulatory requirements and usher in a new era of SRRAs in terms of design and sustainability. When completed, the J.C. Erreca SRRA will be the most sustainable SSRA ever built by Caltrans. The Caltrans District 10 Construction Team and contractor Walsh Construction Company of Concord, California, began work on the Erreca rest area in April 2022, and have a projected completion date of July 2024. Sustainability Features are a Model for the Future The number of visitors to roadside rest areas has multiplied since the early days of highway travel and is expected to continue to grow, so expanding capacity is key. “For the construction years 2022 and 2023, average annual daily traffic numbers at the SRRA were 1,800 southbound and 2,080 northbound. By the year 2042, which is the design year—that is, the expected design life of the project—we expect to Fig. 1: Concrete pavement was selected to help withstand heavy I-5 traffic and California’s hot temperatures.
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