Cost of Asphalt Spikes

This summer, the price of asphalt -- the black mix of rocks and petroleum cement used to blacktop roads, driveways and parking lot throughout the country -- has shot upward.

In the last 18 months, the cost of a ton of asphalt cement, commonly referred to as liquid asphalt, has spiked by more than 122 %, from $180 a ton in early 2005 to more than $400 a ton this summer.

And, since asphalt cement accounts for about 5 %of the typical road paving mix, that increase has also pushed the cost of hot mix asphalt to as high as $45 to $85 per ton, an increase of $15 to more than $20 a ton from last year.

The cost increase is tied mainly to one factor:

The increasing cost of crude oil, from which asphalt cement is obtained.

So, as the cost of crude oil has climbed to more than $75 a barrel this week, the cost of asphalt, like all petroleum products, has followed suit.

However, the rising costs have also translated into sharply higher costs for many who lay asphalt pavement on a much larger scale.

The province has observed asphalt cost increases of about 20 %this year, mirroring a similar increase in 2005.

The province will likely not be able to pave as many miles of roadway as it otherwise may wish to do.

In Ottawa, the city engineers said the cost of asphalt is a constant worry as the two cities seek bids for their annual round of summer roadwork, which each city funds through its share of the province's Fuel Tax.