Why Does Road Construction Take So Long?

I've heard several engineers talk about how infamously difficult soil engineering is. And when the soil engineers make a mistake, everything that is build on top is ruined. Always keep the dirt guys happy.

Actual reason projects take so long. Contractor: During excavation, an existing water-line not shown on plan is interfering with our work. Please see the attached change order request to remove/re-locate. Owner: Please see note 8,273 on page C-807 that reads, "The contractor is responsible for surveying the area pre-bid." Goes into 6-months of scope negotiations, finally settle on a new scope of work Contractor: We propose a change order to our contract of (About 10x what it's actually worth). Owner: Ah, I see. We counter offer with $0, because fuck you. Re-negotiate the scope of work for another 6 months Contractor: Okay, we propose 1.5x the value of this work. Owner: Alright, well it's only worth 0.5x the value, so let's just agree in the middle. Comes to an agreement after a year 2 Weeks later... Random laborer: Hey boss, what do you want us to do with this second water-line?

When I was a kid, there was a state highway being built that my dad and I was drove almost every weekend I was with him. I’ll never forget the excitement of seeing how much progress was made since the last time we saw it.

"I love construction - always have - and when it happens along my commute, I love it even more because I get to see the slow but steady progress each day." This quote is EXACTLY how I feel. Construction is a huge reason why I went into Civil Engineering.

“Behind the Cones” would be a great title for an entire Practical Engineering sub-series.

Definitely continue this series, it was great!

Yes as a former excavation construction worker it's very cool to see the machinery up close and twice as fun to drive/operate

My last visit to Mexico, there were hundreds of workers working on a new piece of road in my grandmas town, no lie in just 4 days, the workers made a new road 4 kilometers long, 2 lanes both ways, whereas over here it took workers 3 weeks to remove around 500 feet of concrete barriers, the ones that look exactly like the ones dividing a freeway, just to reopen up the shoulder that was repaved and had a guard rail addition

Gf: take me somewhere expensive to eat. Me: got ya. Picnic by the side of the road it is.

As a trucker who has driven about 2m miles, I’ve seen that soil density metering device used so many times, and now I can die satisfied finally knowing what it is . 🤗

That was very interesting. For me, the most important information was that soil can only be compacted at 30cm at a time. Now I understand why the same work seems to be happening for days/ weeks at a time on some parts of highways.

Thanks for the explanation. As the son of a Highway Department Engineering tech (Idaho), I'd love to see you describe, compare and contrast the different techniques for road maintenance: including slurry seal, chip seal, overlay, and complete rebuild, and asphalt versus concrete pavement. More people see these civil engineering projects every day than they see new construction. Thanks again!

One thing about roads that's always had me curious is how the expected lifespan of a road is calculated and what types of decisions are made to decide how durable a road should be. I imagine the latter is almost exclusively "local and state codes," but a deeper dive into the trade-offs one makes when building an interstate highway versus a residential street seems like an interesting topic to explore.

As part of the series can we address. The project management aspect, in particular how these are funded and how that affects scheduling? It is so frustrating to see start/stop activity in these projects.

Every YouTube story, channel and or subject should take note of how well Grady does his. The absolute best at answering questions and doing it all with out over the top screaming or patronizing the viewer, thanks I appreciate you.

Keep it going Grady .... love your narration, your subject matter .... MORE ROAD CONSTRUCTION.

"I love seeing the slow but steady progress each day." You clearly haven't seen the way roads are built here in the UK. Nothing happens for weeks then you see a massive change overnight followed by more weeks of nothing. Day 1: Road closes. Week 3: Construction equipment actually arrives on site. Week 4: Construction crew arrive on site. Week 6: The first piece of turf, tree, bush or hedge is actually removed. Month 3: Work actually begins on the earthworks. Month 9: Earthworks completed. Month 12: Work starts on the road surface. Month 13: Road reopens. Month 18: Road closes again for line painting. Year 3: Road closes again multiple times for utility companies to lay their utilities one at a time, often having to come back to fix damaged caused by another utility company. Year 5: Two year old potholes caused by the utility companies damaging the road surface are FINALLY... marked with yellow spray paint by the local authorities. Year 10: Some of the marked pot holes repaired, others left for later. New potholes ignored completely. Et cetera, et cetera.

For me it's all the industrial machinery at work that makes me want to watch the construction. Great video.

I was on a 16 week course at the Ford Training Centre at Dagenham at the same time as an elevated road was being built 50M south of the site we were based at. The huge machine being used was the same one that built the Queen Elizabeth Bridge over the Thames at Dartford, and the process was beyond fascinating. As engineers we were in heaven having this ringside view of the two lane elevated road slowly advance across the site. It was all I could do to drag myself away from it and return to the class after lunch breaks. It's a memory that will stay with me forever.

Spend 60 years in the Soil Testing Business, there is so much to building a road, and the testing starts years before the 1st Bulldozer pushes any Soil. Great content on this subject keep it coming.