Launch of recycled asphalt

13/05/2018

In May 2018, Downer’s Infrastructure Services roads business launched a new recycled asphalt product to join the series of our recycled road products.

Downer and our customer, Hume City Council, partnered with Close the Loop and RED Group to build the first ever Australian road with soft plastics and glass. Soft plastics from approximately 200,000 plastic bags and packaging, 63,000 glass bottle equivalents, toner from 4,500 used printer cartridges and 50 tonnes of recycled asphalt were used to build the road in Craigieburn, located in Melbourne’s north.

This initiative represents Downer’s commitment to thought leadership and a determined effort to make a positive difference. It sets a new benchmark in road construction by creating a new avenue to recycle and repurpose waste materials. This new product has a 65 per cent improvement in fatigue life and a superior resistance to deformation and hence makes the road last longer and allows it to better handle heavy vehicle traffic.

This initiative demonstrates Downer’s contribution to achieve the following Sustainable Development Goals: