One of Australia’s biggest concrete recycling projects has helped turn more than 200,000 tonnes of the old cracked surface of the M1 Pacific Motorway between Tuggerah and Doyalson into a brand new road.
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.
Pieces were then transferred to a mobile crushing plant, where the rubble was refined into gravel and then incorporated into the new road layers.
Using recycled concrete means fewer trucks on the road and less new materials, ultimately saving time and money while reducing environmental pressures, said Parliamentary Secretary for Central Coast, Adam Crouch.
NSW Minister for Regional Transport and Roads, Paul Toole, says the State Government is leading the way in delivering innovative solutions to maximise efficiencies and minimise environmental impact on major road projects.
“Already we’ve seen other major projects utilising waste water, debris and mulch to stabilise landscapes and fuel biomass-powered generators,” he said.
“Initiatives attached to these projects have also recycled thousands of tonnes of asphalt, concrete, steel and timber.”
The Tuggerah to Doyalson section of the M1 upgrade is nearly completion and is expected to be fully operational by mid-2020.
Source:
Media release, Jun 1
NSW Minister for Regional Transport and Roads, Paul Toole
Reporter: Sue Murray