Porous Pavement Solves Stormwater Challenges on Urban Roadway Improvement

Hague Avenue is a major north-south connector for the west side of Columbus. A 4100-foot section of Hague Avenue between Broad Street and Sullivant Avenue had fallen into disrepair and was in need of major rehabiliation. The existing roadway lacked adequate stormwater infrastructure and overlaid multiple times in the past. resulting in a lack of defined parking and poor drainage. As the city’s prime consultant on the project, Crawford, Murphy & Tilly (CMT) began work during preliminary design, presenting options based on existing and proposed pavement structures, pedestrian safety, defined user parking and providing a drainage solution within the limitations of the existing storm sewer infrastructure.

We worked closely with the city to implement user-based design improvements, such as curb extensions, which calm traffic, increase safety for motorists, pedestrians and bicyclists, and help protect parked vehicles. As we addressed the user-based improvements, we also tackled the bigger stormwater issue. To address this issue, CMT developed and proposed a solution that was new to the City of Columbus – the city’s first porous asphalt pavement roadway.

CMT reviewed the existing storm sewer infrastructure – most of which was constructed in 1913 – along with the existing topography, and determined adequate improvements could not be accomplished due to the existing lack of inlets, the depth of the main sewer line and the overall flatness of the roadway. With these limitations, we used the proposed roadway layout to implement porous asphalt pavement within the protected parking areas to offset the lack of drainage, improve water quality, and promote infiltration back into the groundwater system, all at a cost savings when compared to reconstruction of the storm sewer main.