Nov. 1, 2006

Contacts:

Media notes:

*Call to schedule video or photography shoot of crews applying SafeLane ™ Surface Overlay on the northbound lanes of the bridge at US 19/23 and the southbound lanes of the bridge at US 25/70 near Asheville on Wednesday, Nov. 1 or Tuesday, Nov. 2, weather permitting; and/or to arrange an interview with SafeLane Surface Overlay representative.

*Click on http://www.cargillsafelane.com/news/media_tools.shtm and scroll to view animation and b-roll. Broadcast quality b-roll available upon request.

New Technology to Make Roads and Bridges Safer in Winter Comes to North Carolina

Fall has arrived and that means North Carolina motorists will soon need to watch out for frost, ice and the other hazards.. Each year, adverse weather conditions contribute to an average of 1.4 million car accidents in this country, resulting in 7,000 deaths, more than 600,000 injuries, and $42 billion in economic loss, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

So, this fall the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) is trying something new. The SafeLane ™ Surface Overlay system will be installed during the week of Oct. 30 (weather permitting) on two bridges near Asheville. SafeLane is being applied to the northbound lanes of US 19/23 and the southbound lanes of US 25/70. The other lanes will provide a control section to help evaluate the benefits of the new technology. These will be the first test sites in North Carolina for this new technology which is designed to keep ice away and drivers safer. Funding for the project is being provided through the Federal Highway Administration as part of its Innovative Bridge Research and Construction program.

Here’s how the technology licensed and marketed by Minnesota-based Cargill works: SafeLane is made up of a patented combination of epoxy and aggregate rock. Transportation workers “charge” the surface with their standard liquid anti-icing chemicals before frost or ice storms are expected. The SafeLane overlay acts like a rigid sponge, storing the chemicals inside, and then automatically releases them as conditions develop for the formation of ice or snow. The result is safer roads with better mobility and less maintenance, because the overlay helps prevent frost or ice from ever forming on road or bridge surfaces, and keeps releasing the anti-icing chemicals over multiple events.

“Billions of tax dollars are spent each year to preserve and maintain roads and bridges. SafeLane can extend the life of roads and bridges by acting as a sealant to reduce the effects of chloride and water intrusion. More importantly, it can reduce accidents and save lives,” says Bob Persichetti, general manager for SafeLane Surface Overlay.

An analysis of SafeLane’s performance during the 2005-2006 winter season found no weather-related accidents at all nine test sites studied. In many cases, this contrasted with multiple accidents on nearby untreated stretches of road or bridge deck. Almost all of the treated sites had a history of winter weather accidents. Leading snow and ice control authority Wilfred Nixon, president of Asset Insight Technologies and a professor of engineering at the University of Iowa, conducted the analysis concluding, “On the basis of the observations made during the 2005-06 winter, SafeLane overlay provides benefits in both safety and mobility under winter storm conditions, and those benefits may be attained with less chemical than would be needed for highway segments without the overlay.” A complete copy of the report, which was commissioned by Cargill, is available at www.cargillsafelane.com.

Transportation departments have been using epoxy overlays for three decades to extend the life of bridges by minimizing water seepage and intrusion of corrosive agents like chlorides. The Virginia Transportation Research Council’s Michael Sprinkel, a national expert in the design, construction and evaluation of epoxy overlays, notes that SafeLane provides all the benefits of standard epoxy overlays. “However,” Sprinkel adds, “the specific aggregate-chemical combination in SafeLane has the additional benefit of minimizing snow and ice-related crashes as well.”

The bridge projects in North Carolina mark the 27th and 28th installations (19 this season, nine previously) of SafeLane at sites in 13 states. Safelane was invented after 10 years of research at Michigan Tech University (MTU).