asphalt, road building--Continuing high asphalt prices detouring road-building industry

Road builders and pavers are breathing a sigh of relief as asphalt prices backed off a two-year high, but they still confront challenges as work generated by federal stimulus money dries up and private jobs are at a standstill. Commercial development, which would include access roads and parking lots for new shopping centers, is at a standstill, said Gary L. Hoffman, executive director of Pennsylvania Asphalt Association. The industry's saving grace has been federal economic stimulus money spent on roads improvements, he said. Road paving is down, which resulted in business declines for paving contractors of 15 percent in each of the last two years.