Have you ever wondered what crews do with all the old concrete during construction projects?
Concrete from the I-696 construction project is being reused on the highway.
“I think we’re making good progress,” said Alan Ostrowski, a Construction Engineer for MDOT. “We are using the old road to rebuild our new road.”
Ostrowski gave us a closer look at the work being done on the I-696 construction project between I-75 and I-94. The concrete has been removed and ready to be reused, thanks to a concrete crusher.
“It’s been proven to provide a suitable base material for new roads.”
The old concrete is about 40 years old. MDOT officials say the new road could last just as long, maybe even longer.
By crushing the removed concrete into stone and using it as a base material underneath the new pavement, that saves crews time and money.
Ostrowski says it’s better for the environment.
“We don’t want large piles of broken concrete that really have limited use just sitting around,” he explained. “Pavement gets pulled off the road from the closed side of the road. It gets hauled here, broken down, remixed and taken back out on the roads.”
The project should be complete in November.
