As long as the patching level is proud of the existing surface, the roller will compact it to the level of the existing base, right? Trouble is, that takes time and if the “lift” is greater than some amount, you won’t get the best compaction of the lower layers.
The bigger issue I see is that they dig some hole to fix something that is fairly deep. Then they backfill without compacting layers or lifts. So the patch is made level with the base but the substrates continue to compact over time, resulting in a dip where the patch is. I have seen some areas where they leave it unpaved for some time to let the cars and rain compact the base materials before coming back and patching the asphalt. That seems to work but requires periodic adding of base materials (stone dust) to keep it compacting.
True but the emphasis now seems to be local absorption versus sending all that storm water elsewhere for bulk treatment. I see requirements for semi-permeable paving in most developments for some time now. You design roads- is that a trend you’re seeing as well?