Sustainable Road Systems

Tuesday, April 13th, 2010

State highway Administrations, Public Works Agencies, developments, contractors, and engineers can now pursue an official sustainability certification for highway projects.  A new rating system has been developed for sustainable roadway design and construction called “Greenroads.”

Greenroads’ goal is to create measurable sustainability benefits to the general public, highway managers, and of course, the environment.  The program is designed to serve to improve safety, reduce the use of raw materials, and extend the life cycle of the highway, among other benefits.

Greenroads is structured on a rating system which is used as a sustainability performance metric for both roadway design and construction.  Points are awarded for positive sustainability choices, which are broken down into two categories: required and voluntary practices.

Required practices must be performed in order for a roadway to be considered a Greenroad, while voluntary practices are optional with extra points being awarded depending on the impact of sustainability.

Futhermore, each Greenroad project earns a certification, of which there are four levels:  Certified, Silver, Gold, and Evergreen.  Each requires specific minimum requirements.

The Greenroads creators have attempted to develop a system that is fair, easy to understand, and most importantly, beneficial.  Learn more about Greenroads.

TPierce   Frederick Ward, Infrastructure, Sustainability
Frederick Ward, Green Roads, Sustainability, Sustainable Roads
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