KMC to take up plastic-mix paving on Bypass, CR Avenue stretches
Times of India | 15 April 2024
Kolkata: After successfully using recycled plastic as an ingredient for paving small lanes and fringe roads under a restoration scheme, the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has taken up similar work on major and arterial roads. Currently, road restoration using plastic mixed with bitumen is ongoing on stretches of Diamond Harbour Road. The civic body’s roads department has also started restoration on a major stretch of EM Bypass, starting from Hiland Park to Dhalai Bridge.
In the next phase, KMC will take help of the new paving scheme to relay or repair stretches of major roads in north and central Kolkata, including CR Avenue, APC Roy Road, Bidhan Sarani, Bowbazar Street, College Street and Lenin Sarani, among others.
According to a KMC official, the city thoroughfares are undergoing a transformation, promising smoother rides and a greener future. “The KMC has embarked on an innovative project, coating the roads with a special mixture that harnessed the power of recycled plastic. After a trial run in Behala, we decided to expand the work to a part of DH Road, closer to Mominpore. This stretch has been successfully paved with plastic as one of the key ingredients. Now, we will take up similar work on stretches of several other major roads,” said a KMC official.
Commuters had complained time and again about the potholes and cracks that plagued the thoroughfares. But this new initiative offers hope. The KMC had conducted successful trials: the plastic coating enhanced the durability of the roads and significantly extended their lifespan.
According to an official, KMC is following a go-slow policy in repairing several roads simultaneously due to non-availability of recycled plastic in large volume. Currently, KMC is procuring plastic granules from the market and mixing them with bitumen to pave roads. KMC has chalked out a plan to manufacture granules at its hotmix units at Goragachha and Palmerbazar. The roads department will also tie up with the solid waste management department to source plastic to be crushed to produce items that will then be mixed with bitumen for paving roads. “We have started waste segregation at the ward level and hope to collect sufficient plastic from homes which can be reused to pave roads,” said an official.