Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, Vice-President of Ghana, Africa, spoke in the capital Accra about new strategies to build long-lasting roads, and that the government of Ghana has resolved to undertake constructing concrete roads in the country. Even though it may cost more [initially] to build concrete roads, Dr. Bawumia believes that considering the lifespan of concrete roads to asphalted/bitumen roads, it makes better economic sense to construct concrete roads.
Dr. Bawumia posed the question, “Why is it that we are not building our roads with concrete, and rather doing all this asphalt, bitumen stuff which gets washed away after about two rainy seasons?”
He then cited the 19-kilometre (12-mi) Tema Steel Works Road (The sole highway of Ghana that links Tema to Accra, capital of Ghana), which was built with concrete and has been going strong for 50 years, saying “that got some of us thinking and began the discussion on the matter”.
The Vice-President used another country as example: since 2014, India made it a policy to build only concrete roads because it is much cheaper. “So, we have been discussing this—as recently as last week in Parliament. Then, the Cabinet decided that we should move towards concrete roads as a country. The Tema Steel Works Road will be the pilot road for the concrete roads in Ghana. There is a lot of wisdom in this shift!”
Advantages of concrete roads:
- Durable and safe—considerably less prone to wear and tear defects like rutting, cracking, stripping, texture loss, and potholes than flexible pavements
- Low maintenance requirement—one of the principal advantages
- Required little or no maintenance well beyond their 40-year design lives
- Less maintenance means fewer traffic delays—huge advantage on our already congested highways
- Fuel consumption is a major factor in the economics: the rolling resistance of pavement is an important contributor to the fuel consumption and corresponding CO2 production. Heavily loaded truck traffic, energy is consumed in deflecting a non-rigid pavement and sub-grade. Rigid concrete pavement will result in less fuel consumption, and a decrease in associated emissions.
- Reduced need for street lighting—due to higher surface reflectivity after dark.
- Electricity savings of about 30% for lamps, lampposts, and signs—brighter surface equals better light reflection
- Reduction in accidents—the largest savings from higher surface reflectivity—and the associated loss of life and serious injury.
To read the entire article, please go to: http://www.peacefmonline.com/pages/local/news/201707/320820.php.
Erskine Dziwornu Nuku, Columnist-GhanaWeb, touted support for Dr. Bawumia’s view and progress on concrete roads in Ghana in the article titled “Concrete roads, the perfect way”. This article is an opinionated, agreeable assessment: Nuku wrote, “I agree totally with Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia on his assertion that as measures to build long lasting roads—future roads should be constructed using concrete. This [goes along with my belief that] ‘Poor countries build rich roads’. I also think that proper and strong arguments be made, instead of using political dictionaries to overthrow big brains.”
Nuku supports the concrete roads, “Not as a ‘Bawumia fanatic’, but a concerned citizen who believes in safeguarding the national purse. It’s good that we analyze by juxtaposing the advantages and disadvantages of concrete roads—between asphalt and concrete roads. At times, political alienations are allowed to eat up our beautiful arguments and hide relevant information necessary for national development.”
News reports stated that potholes started developing on asphalted roads within 6-8 months! Nuku noted 2 examples:
• The famous “Dubai in Ghana” developed potholes 5 months after the 74M-Euros project was commissioned
• The popular Kanazoe Road of Junky’s bitumen surface of the 25.9M-Euro facility eroded 7 months after commissioning
Cost-effective analysis on both asphalt and concrete roads needs to be taken seriously in the short, medium, and long term. Nuku said that in comparison, one would truly opt for the durability and maintenance-free nature of concrete which have a long service life of 20-40 years as compared to asphalts of 10 years. Concrete roads do not require frequent repairs as the asphalt roads—means less congestion and disruption, and less danger to roads crews and drivers—saving Ghana money to use for other developmental projects directly and indirectly.
Nuku also discusses the fact that asphalts are dark in color, which absorb more lights and heat. “And, take into consideration the temperature of the South Saharan countries like Ghana, one would argue that asphalt would absorb too much heat from the scorching sun!” Nuku reiterated that concrete roads are:
- Naturally reflective due to light color—areas around the pavement stay cooler, amounting to less heat
- Environmentally friendly: light-colored nature, more sunlight and warmth is reflected upward and the earth is cooler
- Amount to minimal fuel consumption
- Give loaded trucks better traction
- Have virtually non-existent hydroplaning
- Hold up well under heavy loads (Asphalt ruts quickly)
- Not prone to tear under stresses (like asphalt)
- Much better in preventing skidding, making traveling safer
- More resistant to oil leakages
- Cheaper to recycle than the asphalt—easily crushed into gravel and reused in other construction works
- Able to withstand extreme weather conditions (better than asphalt roads)
- Advantageous in urban settings in terms of safety and aesthetics—stamping and coloring increases safety at crosswalks and enhances aesthetics
“If midday politicking could be avoided and a mutual consensus built on some ideas like that of Dr. Bawumia and others, Nuku thinks Ghana would be a new discovery in years to come—and a shining example for other south Saharan countries because already we are the hope of Africa.”
To read this entire commentary, please go to: https://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/features/Concrete-roads-the-perfect-way-560614.
Zambia, Africa road construction was highlighted in an article from Zambia Daily Mail Limited titled “Overhauling Ndola-Mufulira Road” by MWILA NTAMBI. It explains that the repaving of the Ndola-Mufulira Road—a stretch connecting the towns of Ndola and Mufulira on the Copperbelt in Zambia—is a strategic economic road for the African nation at large. Ronald Chitotela, Minister of Infrastructure and Housing, said the scope of the work will include removing the entire road and building a new one in its place, constructing concrete pavements in selected sections—paving and surfacing, as well as constructing culverts, among other things.
During the Mufulira ground-breaking ceremony of the 70-km Ndola-Mufulira road (and the 9.8-km Mufulira-Mokambo road), Edgar Lungu, President of Zambia, said, “The construction of the road is in line with Government’s agenda of transforming Zambia into a truly land-linked country. For many years, the road has been in a deplorable state, and [although the contract was signed in 2015] there has not been any form of maintenance on this road due to lack of funding, making it a nightmare for motorists to use. The launching of this project has been a great source of joy for me because this is what we promised the people and more promises are yet to be fulfilled.” He was confident that once the roadwork is begun, it would positively impact on the residents that use it, listing some of the benefits for travelers: Reduced congestion on the Kitwe-Ndola dual carriageway; Reduction in travel time and vehicle operating costs; Job creation for young people; Ensure at least 20% of major road works to local Zambian contractors (as directed by the Head of State to the Road Development Agency (RDA)); and Easier and faster transportation on agricultural produce to the market.
Bowman Lusambo, Copperbelt Province Minister, said the road is a shorter route for trucks from the mines in North-Western Province and Chingola, making it a strategic key in assisting the province’s diversification agenda to merge from over-dependence on mining to agriculture. Luckson Ndhlovu, Vice-President-Mufulira Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI), said the road has important economic value to the Mufulira district and the province at large. The Mufulira business community also share the joy of the construction of the road.
To read entire article, please go to: https://www.daily-mail.co.zm/overhauling-ndola-mufulira-road/.
Maps: GOOGLE
Thanks for the Interesting article! I love the quote “Poor countries build rich roads”! It means to me they realize there is no guarantee that they will have the dollars to address perpetual maintenance problems if they elect to build poor quality roads. I wish more wealthy countries would have a similar attitude and be better stewards of taxpayer dollars!