Geof says:

Jerry,

I have seen ads in model railroad magazines for ‘pre-fab’ roads although you can make your own fairly cheaply.

The easiest and less messy method is to use adhesive backed floor tiles. Using a utility knife and straight edge or scissors, you can cut road sections the proper width and stick them to the layout surface after you have painted them medium to dark gray (NOT black – only new asphalt is black). This method works best if you are laying the tile on a smooth flat surface such as plywood.

Another method is to get 1/4 inch wide weather stripping that has adhesive on one surface. Apply the weather stripping where the OUTSIDE edge of the road would be. What you are trying to make is essentially a form to hold the plaster in place that you’ll be using for the road itself. Once the weather stripping is in place and secure, mix up a thin batch of plaster (or you can use premixed patching plaster) and pour it between the weather stripping but not too much. Then take a straight piece of wood that is a bit longer than your road is wide and use it like a snow plow. Letting it rest on the weather stripping, carefully push wood ‘plow’ forward so it causes the plaster to completely fill in the road area. One the plaster sets, remove the weather stripping and any plaster that spilled over the edges. Paint the road area medium to dark gray and then apply white or yellow lines to simulate center lines and cross walks.

Railroad crossings can be done with using the above methods but the only difference would be to run an old N scale freight car truck back and forth on the track when the plaster has set up a bit. This is to make the groves for the train wheels. Once the plaster is fully set, carefully scrape the tip of a modeling knife in the grooves that the truck wheels made to make sure they are deep enough so your equipment won’t derail. As before, paint the dried plaster the color you’ve selected for your roadwork.

You can also use thin strips of wood between the rails for a rural or old fashioned ‘planked’ crossing look. Once installed, paint the wood dark brown or a light gray (for a weathered appearance) again making sure that your equipment can pass over the crossing without derailing or getting hung up on any couplers (if you are using knuckle style).

Hope this helps,

Geof