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A while ago I wrote a post, Roads: Why Are They Still Asphalt? In it I expressed my desire for the future of road materials. No more hours idling in construction zones as they pour more oil to patch another season’s worth of a billion or so potholes. Better drainage and more traction during slippery conditions. Why weren’t these goals being pursued by the best and brightest of engineers? It turns out, someone was indeed working on this problem and it’s looking even better than I had hoped.
Julie and Scott Brusaw in Idaho are developing solar roadways. Here’s the quick version of all the awesome their new road promises:
- They use high-durability, textured glass to cover hexagonal solar modules with internal heaters and LED lights.
- It exceeds standards for weight tolerance, toughness, and traction.
- LED’s mean clear road lines forever, no paint, and alerting drivers to pedestrians as they step out onto crosswalks.
- Heaters deal with snow and ice.
- Modular roads mean broken pieces are quickly identified and replaced.
- Electric cars will be able to plug into the road to recharge.
- More features and details in their FAQ
- No more potholes-ever
What we have here is technology that greatly increases road safety, greatly decreases the use of fossil fuels, and it encourages the development and use of electric vehicles. It’s everything my last article asked for and more.
The obvious question is, while this all sounds great, can this new road feasibly deliver on all that it promises? I don’t know, but in the spirit of my last article, I don’t think it matters that much. If we really are at the cusp of a road revolution and kids 20 years from now look back at asphalt roads the way we currently look at VHS tapes, all the better. However, my cynical side is well trained, and I doubt such a smooth victory is forthcoming. But I’m STILL excited. These solar roadways are here, they are being tested, and people are talking about them. Even if, in this iteration, they are a dismal failure, the seeds of progress have been planted. Whatever unforeseen problems arise, we will learn from them. While I’m unsure of the rate of road progress, I’m thrilled to know that, slow or fast, it’s actually happening. So read all about it, spread the word, and let’s see if we can get this happening sooner, rather than later.
We live in an age of innovation. Using the great scientific advances of previous generations and implementing them in new and creative ways is huge part of our progress. No longer burdened by what we can do (mostly), the question for most fields now is how we can do it better. Can we do it faster? Can we do it cheaper? Can we do it greener? Can we do it prettier? Can we do it easier?
In these pursuits we have seen some phenomenal advances. Urban transportation has seen cars go from obnoxiously loud, disgustingly dirty, and horribly dangerous automobiles for the social elites to quick, small, light, potentially electric cars for most families, some having two or three vehicles. Computers have gone from hand cranked, room-sized bean counters to tiny tera-byte twirling do-almost-anything devices. Body armour has gone from heavy, ill-fitting, steel barrels to light-weight, bullet absorbing liquid kevlar vests. Cast iron stoves to electric grills. Horse-drawn ploughs to John Deeres. Muskets to laser-sighted assault rifles. Absolutely everything is being made with advanced materials to get the most out of just the right resources. All these technological wonders flashed through my head as I waited in yet another traffic standstill due to construction. Why are roads still made of asphalt?
Asphalt roads began being made in the early 1800’s (even before the first combustion engine cars hit the streets) and all I can find, as far as research and advancement goes, are efforts to make asphalt cheaper and faster to produce. That’s it. No new materials for roads. No ideas for the super draining, no-slip driving surface. No new compound that will last more than a year before cracking and developing potholes. Nothing. Why the hell not? Read the rest of this entry »
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