Plastic roads of India | Ep. #77

<p>I am tired of traveling on pothole filled roads constantly changing service roads in my neighborhood. I wonder how authorities manage to get funds approved to dig 6ft deep on the same road EVERY YEAR!</p> <p>This may sound like a mini rant, but If you are in India, I guess you can relate to this experience. Don’t you think that we spend a lot on building roads that develop potholes? What a waste of tax money!</p> <p>Not only is it unproductive, this recurring process uses way more sand, stone &amp; bitumen in addition to excessive workmanship hours and obviously never ending traffic in a way making the whole city unproductive. This reality proves how the local authorities are mindlessly seeking short-term goals without considering long-term solutions. I also feel that most citizens have given up whistleblowing on such activities.</p> <p>But guess what, I just found out that a circular solution already exists and many cities across across 11 states in India have implemented this innovation.</p> <p>Curious to know what it is? The solution is hybrid plastic roads! This system was developed by Dr. Rajagopalan Vasudevan, a professor of chemistry at the Thiagarajar College of Engineering in Madurai, India. This system replaces 10% of road's bitumen with repurposed plastic waste.</p> <p>Confused? Okay let’s break it down. As an Aam Janata most of us may have noticed these two types of road construction: A) Asphalt / Tar roads; B) Concrete roads</p> <p>The plastic road can be considered a sustainable alternative for Asphalt roads because Asphalt roads are made out of a mix of Sand, Stone / aggregate &amp; Bitumen.</p> <p>In comparison to the speed of infrastructure development, Sand and stone are non-renewable resources as they undergo unsustainable mining processes. Bitumen too is non-renewable as it is a byproduct of the Oil &amp; Gas industry.</p> <p>It is a low tech, simple process. First, the plastic waste is shredded to sizes of 1.6mm to 2mm and scattered onto an aggregate of crushed stones and sand before being