Why do many roads constructed in India fail prematurely?
Prof. Prithvi Singh Kandhal
There is a fundamental engineering requirement with respect to the bituminous mix used in road construction. The mix should be dense so that water cannot penetrate it. In fact, water can destroy both rural roads as well as national highways as it can penetrate both the semi-dense and open graded bituminous mix used in road construction. Despite this knowledge and technical research that dissuades the use of outdated technologies, such mixes are permitted and are being used widely across India.
But why do we permit such bituminous mixes?
Though, it is important to consider the quality of materials and methods used for road construction, many bituminous roads constructed in India fail prematurely and develop potholes, especially during monsoons. Today, even the “aam aadmi” knows that water is Enemy Number 1 of bitumen but many of our highway engineers ignore it and use the so-called “semi dense” or “open” graded bituminous mixes in road construction, which gives an open invitation to water.
This, despite technical research that dissuades use of outdated technologies, many new, innovative materials and solutions being introduced by specialized companies.
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NBM&CW March 2018
