When Emery Village BIA's decorative pavers failed under heavy truck traffic, TrafficPatternsXD took their place, matching the original design with a fraction of the maintenance.
Striking a balance between form, function, and style on infrastructure projects can be tricky. In many cases, the solution lies in using the right materials. A case in point is a streetscape redesign project in Toronto's Emery Village, which used HUB Surface Systems' decorative asphalt surfacing to renew its high-traffic areas.
Unit pavers under heavy load
The initiative was launched by the Emery Village Business Improvement Area (BIA) in 2020 as a legacy project to revitalize unit pavers it had installed 12 years earlier. Coloured in the community's unique "Emery Blue," the pavers were designed as a decorative entrance gateway feature and traffic calming measure.
Shortly after installation, however, they began to break down.
"Over the years, the increasing volume of commercial and heavy trucks caused excessive wear and tear on the pavers. This required frequent repair and replacement, so maintenance became an overriding concern," recalls Al Ruggero, Project Manager with Emery Business BIA.
Attempts to patch or re-lay the unit pavers proved only temporary fixes. Searching for something more permanent, Emery Village BIA reached out to HUB Surface Systems.
"That's when we saw an opportunity to put our TrafficPatternsXD enhanced stamped asphalt surfacing system to the test," recalls Doug Bain, Principal with HUB Surface Systems.
TrafficPatternsXD
TrafficPatternsXD proved to be an ideal fit for the Emery Village project. The aggregate-reinforced preformed thermoplastic let Emery Village BIA restore its crossings with a durable, decorative asphalt surface that looks like paving stone.
"The choice of replacing the pavers with TrafficPatternsXD allowed us to replicate the colour and maintain the crossway paver grid design and gain a low-maintenance product with a longer lifespan," notes Ruggero. "The material provided us with continuity of design and less traffic disruption in construction than with replacing the pavers or demolishing the concrete base."
Restoring the unit pavers meant installing TrafficPatternsXD across 440 m². The task fell to the team at Multiseal.
"Installing TrafficPatternsXD in environments like this is really rewarding," recalls Robert Barbieri, General Manager with Multiseal. "This is a busy location, so having a product down that won't require ongoing maintenance will certainly be appreciated by the local community."
Barbieri added that the new surfaces tie in nicely with the other features that the BIA has put together to brand the community: flags, benches, and pedestrian spaces.
"We've been installing TrafficPatternsXD for almost 12 years now, and we know that this is the perfect application for it."
Future Applications
The success of Emery Village BIA's unit paver restoration has opened new opportunities for TrafficPatternsXD within the district. The organization is considering its use on other BIA applications, noting the material has proven to be an ideal choice for creating traffic-resistant surfaces with the area's unique Emery Blue branding.
"What we love about TrafficPatternsXD is that it can be applied in a broad range of customized patterns and colours, and it really holds up against everything the Canadian climate can throw at it," says Bain. "We've been working with this product for years, and we're always eager to show what it can do for our partners."
Contact HUB Surface Systems about TrafficPatternsXD for your BIA corridor or streetscape.
