The present invention relates to the preparation of water based coating compositions having extended storage stability. The composition includes separately stored polymeric binder component and a crosslinking component.These components are mixed prior to application over surfaces, such as, road surfaces. The polymeric binder component includes an anionically stabilized binder polymer having at least one reactive functional pendent moiety, or a blend of the binder polymer with a polyfunctional amine. The pot mix of the coating composition has extended storage stability. The waterborne road marking paints of the present invention exhibit improved wear resistance on road surfaces in terms of paint remaining on the road longer than waterborne road marking paints based on the storage stable component alone. The present invention provides road marking paints that can be applied by conventional road striping equipment and do not require special two component spray equipment.