In a concrete recycling project first, the New South Wales Government has used more than 200,000 tonnes of old surface of the M1 Pacific Motorway to build a brand new road.
New South Wales Minister for Regional Transport and Roads, Paul Toole, said the project would provide safer and more reliable trips for motorists once complete, with lower costs and reduced environmental impact during its construction.
“The New South Wales Government is leading the way in delivering innovative solutions to maximise efficiencies and minimise environmental impact on major road projects,” Mr Toole said.
“Already, we’ve seen other major projects, including the Pacific Highway upgrade between Woolgoolga and Ballina, utilising waste water, debris and mulch to stabilise landscapes and fuel biomass-powered generators. Initiatives attached to these projects have also recycled thousands of tonnes of asphalt, concrete, steel and timber.
“This latest M1 project, which has seen the old surface incorporated into the new road, is just another example of how we’re playing our part in delivering projects that will benefit future generations to come.”
Parliamentary Secretary for the Central Coast and Member for Terrigal, Adam Crouch, said this particular section of the Pacific Motorway was built in the 1980s and is used by more than 70,000 vehicles each day.
“The process to recycle the road along this section began with a rubbeliser, which is a threshing machine that churns the old roadway up into football-sized pieces of rubble. The pieces were then transferred to a mobile crushing plant, where the rubble was refined into gravel and then incorporated into the new road layers,” Mr Crouch said.
“Using recycled concrete means fewer trucks on the road and less new materials – ultimately saving time and money while reducing environmental pressures.”
For more information, and to see how the concrete recycling process works, click here.
