For the first time, Regional Roads Victoria has introduced recycled plastics into road and asphalt mix with building a new stretch of the Great Ocean Road at Lorne.
Brett McLean, Business Development Manager at GT Recycling says "the material used in the roads not only diverts plastic from landfill, but this project employed local people from the Surf Coast".
Sustainable road building and road surfacing practices
Traditionally, materials used in road asphalt mixes included virgin materials. According to Emma Miller-Olsen, "Regional Roads Victoria is constantly looking for sustainable ways to improve the sustainability aspects of road surfacing and road building. For the first time, we're incorporating recycled plastics into our road asphalt mix."
Durability Of Recycled Plastic In Road Asphalt Mix
The properties delivered by recycled plastic within the road asphalt, improves resistance to fatigue and is expected to last longer than an standard asphalt road, says Noriko Wood at Fulton Hogan.
The Road Resurfacing Project
The project required one and a half kilometres of road to be resurfaced. Within this asphalt, more than three tonnes of recycled plastic, or 300,000 plastic bottles was mixed, to produce a more durable surface, and to divert this waste from landfill. The old road surface was take up, broken down, and also mixed within the new asphalt, contributing to ten percent of the mix. This project was part of a joint initiative by the Federal and State Governments to invest $50 million to upgrade the Great Ocean Road.