Ingår i: EPAM 2012: Malmö, Sweden, 5–7 September: 4th European pavement and asset management conference

Heating pavement or the accumulation of heat in the pavement contributes significantly to the average temperature increase in modern urban environments. Because the portion of traffic areas in city centres is significant, application of pavement structures that reduce the effect of warming is one of the strategies that can help mitigate the urban heat island effect. A large part of central city areas is covered with asphalt pavements. A significant problem of the City is the absence of green areas. The City centre has large parking areas which are constructed as standard asphalt pavements without greening. These areas greatly contribute to the average temperature increase in the City. In addition to reducing the urban heat island effect, cool pavements which can replace the standard pavement construction in the City of Rijeka may contribute to a better storm water management, night-time illumination, noise reduction and pavement deformation prevention which are typical for large longitudinal grades (rutting, shoving ...). A large part of pedestrian areas is suitable for reconstruction by using cool paving materials and, due to their sufficient wideness, can certainly be enriched by planting urban trees. The aim of this paper is to present temperature trends of the covering surfaces in the centre of the City compared to the same surfaces of the surrounding area and the measured air temperatures during the summer. The paper will show results of temperature measurements on surfaces of different types of pavements (such as asphalt, concrete, stone ...) in several different locations. The result of the paper is a review of possible locations where the use of cool pavements is a solution to reduce urban heat island effect and improve the quality of life in the city. Key words: cool pavements, urban heat island effect, temperature