In the article “Developing sustainable infrastructure in new cities”, Cho (2014) expressed the importance of sustainable infrastructure in a metropolitan setting and identified key areas in determining how infrastructure can add value to the community. She discussed how due to economic-driven developments in new cities being affected by metropolitan challenges, enhancements in functionality and durability of infrastructure are necessary to keep up with these developments. As an Impact King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) Fellow, Cho also explained how she intended to apply the Envision sustainability rating system as an impartial guideline to evaluate sophisticated infrastructure development. The article listed two highways built in Mexico and Peru that followed the Envision framework and highlighted how they both have had economic, social and environmental benefits. In the course of her Fellowship, Cho also “aims to provide an Envision evaluation on a major planned road that is expected to be a main entry point and arterial road in King Abdullah Economic City”, to satisfy KAEC’s extensive sustainable infrastructure development. She believes that the Envision framework will benefit not only KAEC, but new cities globally too. Cho is right by saying that sustainable developments based on a carefully-reviewed framework used in the green development of a new city's roads would help to pave its foundation, which would also reduce future problems in the long run.
Roads are the arteries of a city, where not only resources flow in-and-out for its economy to flourish, but also for its citizens back-and-forth to connect with one another. It is how a city can begin to prosper, taking in trade and like nutrients from a root. Without a stable foundation that sustainable road development provides, a city is bound to waste resources on repairing and maintaining the wear and tear that results thereafter.
The Envision Rating system encourages the use of the materials that are recycled or reclaimed. This can, at the same time, be sustainable and benefit the community on a physical aspect. For example, the usage of conventional asphalt— which, apart from its strength and durability, are usually impervious and hydrophobic— can result in increased surface run-off in the event of heavy downpour. This can lead to increased risk of flooding at areas with lower elevation. The use of porous asphalt normally containing up to 20% of reclaimed asphalt (Molenaar, 2013) however, allows stormwater to sift through its surface into the soil subsurface. These pervious roads also mean there will be lesser pooling of water on its surface, reducing headlight glare and decreasing the risk of hydroplaning in a vehicle. (Spurling, 2013).
The use of sustainable materials for road paving can also reduce the risk of damage. In many cities, their municipal water supply pipelines run underneath or along its network of roads. The need for road repairs can lead to unexpected and excessive soil settlement in the future, which can dislodge or crack water pipes that run below or beside its length. It is expensive, time-consuming and disruptive to traffic to repair these leakages. Sometimes, these leakages do not even surface and go undetected, leading to water resources being drained off and wasted indefinitely. These water seepages can also eventually form multiple potholes under the surface of their roads. (Vijetha, 2016). The use of rubberised bitumen introduces a trait of flexibility on the roads. This material absorbs some of the bending induced from its surrounding settling. (Moe, 2017). This would greatly reduce the frequency of water leakages due to the inflexibility of conventional asphalt.
In conclusion, the Envision rating system serving as an incentive for responsible road developments the paving of new roads for new cities can concurrently be sustainable and provide benefits beyond just being green. Apart from the economic, social and environmental benefits, green alternatives road constructions do provide improvements on a simpler superficial level as well.
References:
Cho, H. (2014). Developing sustainable infrastructure in new cities.
Retrieved from: https://newcities.org/evaluating-sustainable-infrastructure-development-new-cities/
Moe, A. L. (2017). Crumb rubber modified bitumen in open graded wearing course of flexible pavement. Open Journal of Civil Engineering, 166-167.
Molenaar, A. (2013). Durable and sustainable road constructions for developing countries. ScienceDirect. Retrieved from: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877705813003615
Spurling, H. (2013). Water sensitive urban design for sustainable road development. University of Southern Queensland. Retrieved from: https://eprints.usq.edu.au/24702/1/Spurling_2013.pdf
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