This is a great idea (Plastic Roads)

[Nebuchadnezzar]

https://thinkprogress.org/netherlands-company-introduces-plastic-roads-that-are-more-durable-climate-friendly-than-asphalt-ecb7c2a11a50?gi=f63a584843df

This could solve a lot of problems with the amount of plastic that's dumped in the oceans of the world. Hell, maybe some guy out there could start with that Texas sized floating plastic island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean and pave Americas highways and streets with it.

This needs to get out there for everyone to see. Put pressure on the US Government to get this ball rolling or just some person with a lot of ambition and wants to get rich. 

EDIT: This would be perfect for those self driving cars too. Sensors could be laid in every piece of roadway and cars...think iRobot with Will Smith.

EDIT 2: A barge could be made with the equipment to make the road pieces on it. It would sail out to that garbage patch in the Pacific, start gathering the plastic, shred it, compress it into the pieces then put it on another barge to be shipped back to the US.

[*TheLeonardLeap*]

(02-08-2017, 03:21 AM)Nebuchadnezzar Wrote: https://thinkprogress.org/netherlands-company-introduces-plastic-roads-that-are-more-durable-climate-friendly-than-asphalt-ecb7c2a11a50?gi=f63a584843df

This could solve a lot of problems with the amount of plastic that's dumped in the oceans of the world. Hell, maybe some guy out there could start with that Texas sized floating plastic island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean and pave Americas highways and streets with it.

This needs to get out there for everyone to see. Put pressure on the US Government to get this ball rolling or just some person with a lot of ambition and wants to get rich. 

EDIT: This would be perfect for those self driving cars too. Sensors could be laid in every piece of roadway and cars...think iRobot with Will Smith.

EDIT 2: A barge could be made with the equipment to make the road pieces on it. It would sail out to that garbage patch in the Pacific, start gathering the plastic, shred it, compress it into the pieces then put it on another barge to be shipped back to the US.

"...are predicted to last longer than traditional roads..."

"The concept is still in the idea phase — there aren’t any plastic roads being tested in the Netherlands yet, and the company says it still needs to test the idea in a lab to see how it performs under different conditions; whether it’s safe to drive on when wet, for instance."

- - - - - - - - - - - -

They haven't even tested to see if it's safe to drive on wet. Let alone how it handles rain, semis with full loads, or earthquakes. Heck, even handling an incline or curve on a mountain road at 70mph. Will the road hold up to the salt we throw down on it every winter? For that matter, won't ice make it crazy brittle? How much distance will you need to brake on a wet or icy road? How will you replace pieces of it that get worn out or broken from a car crash? Even their durability is only a prediction (and probably based off of Netherlands traffic models, not US).

Not to mention there's not enough plastic in all the oceans combined to pave all the US roads. (~3.9m miles of roads) So do they then just make new plastic to make more roads? (Kind of defeats the purpose, no?) Or do they just piecemeal it together with plastic and asphalt?

You're jumping the gun by quite a bit on wanting this instituted throughout the country.

[*michaelsean*]

I don't know. I've seen a lot of bad wrecks with Hot Wheels.

[GMDino]

Here is PA a few years back they tried mixing in some rubber type compound on certain roads to see if that helped with the expansion and contraction and cracking problems we get.

No idea whatever happened as a result.

But they are working on ways to improve the roads life.

[*michaelsean*]

(02-08-2017, 11:33 AM)GMDino Wrote: Here is PA a few years back they tried mixing in some rubber type compound on certain roads to see if that helped with the expansion and contraction and cracking problems we get.

No idea whatever happened as a result.

But they are working on ways to improve the roads life.

Maybe consider quality over price.  Probably won't get very far doing that though.

[GMDino]

(02-08-2017, 11:36 AM)michaelsean Wrote: Maybe consider quality over price.  Probably won't get very far doing that though.

Plus if they fix them there go the jobs...every year.  lol.

[Yojimbo]

I like the solar panel roads better. Durable, easily replace bad segments and making electricity to boot.

[*Nately120*]

(02-08-2017, 11:38 AM)GMDino Wrote: Plus if they fix them there go the jobs...every year.  lol.

Side note:  I love how the only thing that makes people madder than potholes and crappy roads is having to slow down because said potholes are being fixed.

[GMDino]

(02-08-2017, 08:10 PM)Nately120 Wrote: Side note:  I love how the only thing that makes people madder than potholes and crappy roads is having to slow down because said potholes are being fixed.

Every time!  LOL!

They took about 8 months to do a couple miles near where I live.  Now to get home I only drive one mile on the highway but it was THAT mile they were working on.

They only opened both lanes when the County Fair opened....then they closed them again after to "paint lines".  For two more months!  

So frustrating.

But the road is nice now!  

[Au165]

Yea, this just seems like one of those ideas that sound good in theory but never goes anywhere.

[Rotobeast]

(02-09-2017, 09:29 AM)Au165 Wrote: Yea, this just seems like one of those ideas that sound good in theory but never goes anywhere.

A road that doesn't go anywhere !!
I get it !


Anyway... my dad was a project inspector for ODOT.
The contractors usually admitted to dragging out the projects, as the timeframes were bloated by everyone, when bidding.
Also, ODOT has experimented with plastic mixed into blacktop.
There are ongoing test patches, throughout the state.
They've been testing since the mid-eighties.
Not the modular design, mind you, but plastic and even recycled tires mixed into the asphalt.