In 2009, Montpelier, Vermont actually ripped up a road that they couldn’t afford to fix. A couple living there was having trouble selling their home because of the bad pavement in front of the house. Montpelier has a very small public works budget, so they responded to these complaints by bringing out a machine called “The Reclaimer.”
A substance called a “geotextile” was then used to help prevent erosion and other major damage on the crushed pavement. This is not just in Vermont. According to a survey from the National Highway Cooperative Highway Research program, over 27 states have resorted to unpaving roads that need fixing.
These unpaved roads could actually help if they are done correctly. Pavement makes roads hotter and it contributes to surface run-off, pollution, and flooding. Also, the cement industry contributes to five percent of all global carbon dioxide emissions.
However, unpaved roads can cause problems with cars. Amy Mattinat, owner of Auto Craftsmen in Montpelier said:
“A lot of people in Vermont drive Priuses. But when, after about a year or two, their Priuses just gets totally beat up, there’s a lot of people who turn in their Priuses and go back to an SUV.”
In some cases, driving on gravel can be better for cars. Mattinat also said:
“It’s probably better. We love our dirt roads, in kind of a weird way. Everyone’s got a mud road story.”
According to Builder Online:
“‘We didn’t know how prevalent this was,’ says Laura Fay, an environmental science researcher with Montana State University’s Western Transportation Institute, who helped compile the report. But there’s clear reason for it. The Congressional Budget Office finds that while public spending on transportation and water infrastructure has actually increased since 2003, the costs of asphalt, concrete, and cement have jumped even faster. With those extra expenses factored in, public expenditures on transportation infrastructure relative to cost fell by nine percent between 2003 and 2014.”
