3 ms·

For the curious, "Road damage ... is estimated to be proportional to the fourth power of the axle weight". [0] A chart shows it nicely: https://streets.mn/2016/

• beerandt 7y ago
  Also, it's an elasticity problem. There is essentially no damage and minimal wear until the forces exceed the elastic limit on the stress-strain curve. A road is a spring, and will behave elastically, with almost no deformation, unless you exceed a certain point on the stress-strain curve. This is why the main concern of highway departments is not exceeding maximum axel loads. Worrying about the amount of wear commuters are responsible for is just a distraction. It's like a toddler jumping on your mattress vs a 350 lb offensive-lineman doing it. They both technically cause some amount of wear, but it's not worth figuring out the proportions.