Recycled Rubber Paves the Way to the Future in Troup County, Georgia

March 14, 2018 /3BL Media/ - This week, Troup County will complete the paving of the county’s first “rubber road” on the new Tom Hall Parkway. The project used over 32,000 pounds of recycled tire rubber (RTR) in the top layer or “wearing course” of the road, which represents the rubber taken from over 2,500 end of life passenger tires. The productive and profitable reuse of scrap tires into resilient, crack-resistant asphalt pavement reduces threats to community safety and public health that are inherent to illegal tire dumps, including dangerous tire fires and standing, fetid water that accommodates mosquito breeding.

Tom Hall Parkway was originally proposed in 2016 as a new connection in the LaGrange bypass system. In the later phases of the project design, The Ray identified and brought to county and city leadership the possibility of leveraging additional value by substituting a rubberized asphalt mix for the standard asphalt mix.

This advanced additive technology incorporates RTR directly into the asphalt mixture, thus reducing the volume of petroleum in the mix and extending the useful life of the pavement by 15 to 20 percent. The small upfront cost increase of RTR is easily returned in the immeasurable value of longer-lasting and more durable pavement that requires less maintenance over the life of the road.

“We did a lot of research,” said James Emery, Troup County Engineer, “It’s a high quality paving material that will provide better performance than the asphalt mix we typically use in resurfacing.”   “With so many great things happening in Troup County, it is important for us to show our support for The Ray,” said Troup County Chairman Patrick Crews. “By using the recycled tire product in this road project, we are making two powerful statements. First, helping our environment by the use of this product is important to our citizens and this community. Second, The Ray is putting Troup County on the map around the world in their efforts to transform I-85.  Since the Tom Hall Parkway is adjacent to the interstate and will be the gateway to our new Great Wolf development, Troup County Government is recognizing the importance of both projects to our community and state.”   “The Ray is excited about this project and its potential as a reference point for the 2019 scheduled repaving of The Ray,” said Harriet Anderson Langford, Founder and President of The Ray. "Quiet, durable and safe roads are just one of our missions on The Ray. We are taking discarded tires and converting them into road materials that can improve our environmental footprint.” This project was the results from a partnership between the leaderships of Troup County and the City of LaGrange, The Ray, Liberty Tire Recycling, C.W. Matthews, and supported by the Georgia Department of Transportation. The project is funded by the Troup County special option local sales tax (SPLOST).