REVIEW article
Front. Built Environ.
Sec. Geotechnical Engineering
Geosynthetics in Cold-Region Roads: A State-of-the-Art and Practice Review
- BA
Berjees Anisa Ikra 1
- SP
Sanat Pokharel 2,1
- AC
Arghya Chatterjee 2,1
- CL
Cheng Lin 1
1. University of Victoria, Victoria, Canada
2. Stratum Logics Inc., Acheson, AB, Canada
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Abstract
Seasonal freeze–thaw (F–T) cycles pose significant challenges to the structural performance and long-term durability of road infrastructure in cold regions. Repeated freezing and thawing lead to frost heave, thaw weakening, and subgrade strength loss, often resulting in rutting, potholes, and premature pavement deterioration. Geosynthetics, including planar systems such as geotextiles, geogrids, and geomembranes, as well as three-dimensional systems such as geocells, have increasingly been adopted in transportation infrastructure to improve pavement stability and extend service life. This paper presents a comprehensive review of the state of the art and current practices of geosynthetic applications in cold-region pavements subjected to seasonal freeze–thaw cycles. The review synthesizes findings from field investigations, long-term pavement monitoring, laboratory testing, and numerical modeling studies. Results from experimental studies generally indicate that geosynthetics can enhance pavement performance, although the magnitude of improvement varies depending on soil conditions, moisture content, and reinforcement types. However, most of the existing numerical models and pavement design frameworks do not explicitly incorporate freeze–thaw processes or temperature-dependent soil–geosynthetic interface behavior. Current pavement design frameworks, including the AASHTO 1993 Guide for Design of Pavement Structures and its subsequent Mechanistic–Empirical Pavement Design Guide (MEPDG), along with the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and Transportation Association of Canada (TAC) guidelines, provide limited integration of geosynthetic reinforcement with seasonal variations in soil properties. The review highlights the need for more climate-responsive design parameters and standardized frameworks that incorporate freeze–thaw effects to enable reliable and sustainable use of geosynthetics in cold-region transportation infrastructure.
Summary
Keywords
cold-region pavements, freeze–thaw cycles, geosynthetic-reinforced pavements, Geosynthetics, Pavement design, Pavement reinforcement, soil–geosynthetic interface, sustainable transportation infrastructure
Received
30 May 2026
Accepted
26 June 2026
Copyright
© 2026 Ikra, Pokharel, Chatterjee and Lin. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
*Correspondence: Berjees Anisa Ikra
Disclaimer
All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.