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Recycled Rubber Raises the Road
Maine Bridge Rehabilitation
EPA530-F-03-027
July 2003
When the new Mud Pond Inlet Bridge was constructed, it was described
as an application of "ingenuity to provide a realistic, innovative,
affordable solution." The bridge is located in a rural area, connecting
Maine's third largest city, Bangor, to summer cottages along the shore
of Pushaw Lake. Built in the 1930s, the bridge traditionally flooded a
couple days a year, prohibiting travel in both directions. The recent
conversion of seasonal homes to year-round residences has increased public
demand for something more reliable.
MaineDOT was determined to build a new roadway on the old structure, bringing
it well above water level without significantly increasing the weight
on the existing bridge timbers. The project was estimated to cost $10
million if constructed by traditional methods, yet state planners could
not justify this price tag for a rural road with a relatively low volume
of traffic.
The bridge's design team came up with a plan to reduce the cost to only
$1.3 million, saving a whopping $8.7 million, by building with waste!
To support the roadbed, the design team called for nearly 170,000 previously
used shredded tires—20 percent of the waste tires generated in Maine
in a year—along with geotextiles, a synthetic material that allows
the exchange of water and air. The designers also incorporated old bridge
railings and roadside guard rails from an ongoing highway bridge rehabilitation
project rather than using new metal.
MaineDOT was excited by the cost savings generated from reusing materials
for the new Mud Pond Inlet Bridge, and local residents were ecstatic with
permanent roadway access. MaineDOT commissioner John G. Melrose described
the project as "exactly the kind of creative, innovative thinking
today's transportation environment demands."
For more information, visit the Web site of American
Association of State Highway & Transportation Officials.
View and print this fact sheet (PDF) (1 pg, 98K, About PDF)
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