Ready to drive on plastic roads?

With the Tamil Nadu highways department planning to use waste plastic for road laying, the day may not be far off when there could be a greater demand for the material.

A pilot project to test the quality and durability of plastic roads, especially during the rainy season, is being undertaken, a top official of the highways department said.

Using the technology, developed by the Thiagaraja College of Engineering at Tiruparankunram, the department has planned to re-lay

roads using bitumen mixed with waste plastic in Madurai, Coimbatore, Chennai and Tirunelveli.

A small stretch where there is heavy traffic will be relaid using waste plastic-bitumen mixture in each pilot city. "If the roads prove to be a success, they will be extended to other parts," the official said.

While a normal 'highway quality' road lasts four to five years, Prof R Vasudevan, the brain behind the plastic road, claims plastic-bitumen roads can last up to 10 years.