The Netherlands has yet another world first. Zwolle will get the very first PlasticRoad, a road based on recycled plastic. In September, the first plastic bike path in Zwolle is to be completed. The second bike path elsewhere in the province will follow a few months later. PlasticRoad hopes to eventually conquer the whole of the Netherlands.
The PlasticRoad concept was launched in 2015 by market leader in road construction KWS (a Royal VolkerWessels company). In 2016, KWS entered into a partnership with Wavin and Total to further develop the PlasticRoad. The province of Overijssel and the municipality of Zwolle see great potential in the PlasticRoad as a solution to future challenges and ambitions. Both parties encourage innovation to give entrepreneurs with innovative and sustainable ideas a chance to realise them in practice. In doing so, both governments contribute to a circular economy. By being the first customer of innovative entrepreneurs, a new product can be tested in practice for technical and economic feasibility.
The road to the PlasticRoad
The exact location of the two pilots is still being studied. The cycle lanes will be about 30 metres long. The PlasticRoad is a road made of prefabricated elements, which contains a hollow space for cables and pipes and water drainage. In recent years, PlasticRoad partners KWS, Wavin and Total have worked intensively to develop and test the concept. During the tests, the focus was mainly on technical issues such as the bearing capacity of the modular PlasticRoad elements, the ideal mix of recycled plastic and the most optimal design of the hollow spaces. In addition, a lot of research was done on the environmental impact of the concept. Currently, the results are so positive that the first pilots can become reality. These pilots mark an important step for the further development process of the PlasticRoad. Research still has to show the best way to connect the prefabricated parts.
Some other issues also need to be taken into account in the realisation of the cycle path. Plastic, for instance, is not naturally non-slip enough. "In road construction (asphalt), we have a lot of knowledge and experience in dealing with (and lack of) roughness," KWS says on the specially set up PlasticRoad website. "We can put this knowledge to good use to make the PlasticRoad rough enough. We are first investigating whether we can make the plastic itself anti-slip enough. If this is not possible, we can also incorporate (press, press) a sand or crushed stone into the surface of the PlasticRoad, so that the road still meets the required skid resistance."
Breakthrough
Anne Koudstaal and Simon Jorritsma, devisers of the PlasticRoad and employees of KWS explain: "After a long time of designing, testing and developing, we are extremely proud that our PlasticRoad is now a reality. Together with the province of Overijssel and the municipality of Zwolle, we as PlasticRoad partners are taking the step towards a more sustainable world with this first PlasticRoad cycle path."
Source: Volker Wessels
