THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The State Government is planning to relay 80 per cent of roads in the state using Bituminous Macadam and Bituminous Concrete (BMBC) in order to ensure longer life-span, Works Minister V K Ebrahim Kunju told the Assembly on Thursday.
Relaying roads using BMBC ensures four to five times the life-span of roads on which chipping carpet work has been carried out. The government has set a guarantee period of three years for roads built using BMBC, he said.
“In some stretches such as the Mannarakulanji-Pampa route, a five-year guarantee period for BMBC roads has been set. However, implementing it is not practical as contractors are reluctant to bid when guarantee period is increased above three years,” the Works Minister said.
The Minster said that most of the 1,515 km of National Highways had been relaid using BMBC. Out of 31,812 km of state highways and other roads under the PWD, 5,050 km have been built using BMBC, he said in response to a query by Thomas Unniyadan of Kerala Congress (M).
In the wake of fall in rubber prices, the government will encourage maximum use of Natural Rubber Modified Bitumen (NRMB) in road construction.
Furthermore, Ebrahim Kunju informed the House that use of plastic waste in road construction had been carried out in a 30-km stretch in the state on a pilot basis.
The government has spent an average of Rs 350 crore per year for road repairs over the past three years, Ebrahim Kunju told the House.
