The Concrete Initiative published the article entitled “The Future is Bright with Concrete Roads” by Karl Downey, Secretary General European Concrete Paving Association (EUPAVE). Concrete can provide both the surface layer of roads—which vehicles ride on directly—as well as the base layers. Concrete pavements have been used across Europe for many years and in fact were very widespread up until the 1950s—when there was a subsequent trend towards asphalt, attributed to a focus on initial costs and the availability of bitumen, due to large-scale oil refining.
Concrete pavements have always been appreciated for aspects such as durability and low maintenance—this translates into clear sustainability benefits for today’s eco-conscious world. Just like in buildings, the advantages of concrete in pavements span the three pillars of sustainability: social, economic and environmental.
Social pillar: Concrete contributes to fire safety in tunnels since it does not burn, and fire services recommend the use of concrete pavements in road tunnels. Safety is also enhanced thanks to durability: concrete roads do not form ruts, reducing the risk of aquaplaning.
Economic benefits are clear, too: Concrete pavements have much lower life-cycle costs than the competition, due to their durability. Also, the brighter pavement color means savings in street lighting, due to more reflective lighting. Concrete’s increasing share of road pavements could have some surprising economic benefits. A recent paper from the U.S. illustrates how jurisdictions with healthy competition in the pavement sector—indicated by a minimum concrete share—have lower prices and thus greater spending efficiency for road authorities. The very fact of specifying concrete pavements saves public money! (To read the online “Euractive”article titled “Greater Competition Between Pavement Industries Could Save Public Millions”, please click here.) Also, please see the ISCP article titled ”
Environmental: The long lifetime of concrete pavements is good for the environment. Even more impressive, concrete pavements can reduce emissions from the vehicles riding over them! Due to their rigidity, which reduces the rolling resistance of heavy vehicles, every kilometer of concrete road can reduce the CO2 emissions from vehicles by 1000-4000 ton over a 30-year period.
Road authorities are waking up to the advantages of concrete . . . or rather, they are reawakening. In Poland, for example, work is underway to build 1,380 kilometres of concrete motorways and express roads over the next few years. There, the use of public-private partnerships (PPPs), whereby the private concessionaire has the responsibility to design, finance, as well as maintain the road for 25 or 35 years, means long-lasting concrete is the obvious choice
The sustainability benefits of concrete are clear—benefits that will be shared by citizens, governments and the environment alike. The future is bright with concrete roads!
For further information on all the facts in this article, please click here.