View Post

New Samitron Metrics Prove Effectiveness of Midwest’s Soil-Sement for Unpaved Road Maintenance

In Gravel Roads, Road & Surface Management, Roads, Soil-Sement®, Unpaved Roads by Steve Vitale

Another study, another success. Midwest’s Soil-Sement passed with flying colors after extensive testing was completed in Scottsdale, Arizona on five miles of unpaved roads, at five different sites. The test showed that unpaved roads, in fact, can work just as well as paved roads without the high installation cost to communities. And better yet, unpaved road maintenance can cost a …

View Post

A Solution to America’s Crumbling Infrastructure — Manufacturing

In Gravel Roads, Road & Surface Management, Roads, Unpaved Roads by Steve Vitale

The Impact of Crumbling Roads on the Manufacturing Industry Manufacturing continues to play a critical role in rural economies. Despite an overall reduction in manufacturing jobs between 2001 and 2015 (a period that included two recessions), manufacturing continues to provide more jobs and higher earnings in rural communities than many other sectors, such as agriculture and mining. It is also more important …

View Post

A Solution to America’s Crumbling Infrastructure – Energy Industry

In Gravel Roads, Oil & Gas, Soil Stabilization, Unpaved Roads by Steve Vitale

The Economic Impact Energy production and extraction obviously have a powerful impact on local economies. For example, the Eagle Ford Shale Formation in southern Texas, after a $30 billion play development in 2013, was responsible for a $60 billion economic impact on south Texas and for 115,000 jobs, all by 2015. However, this benefit has come at a cost. As …

View Post

America’s Crumbling Infrastructure and What It Means for Tourism

In Gravel Roads, Road & Surface Management, Roads, Soil Stabilization, Unpaved Roads by Steve Vitale

Some Background on America’s Crumbling Infrastructure  In May 2020, TRIP, a transportation research nonprofit, published a report that assessed the condition of rural America’s crumbling infrastructure. Its findings were not positive.  First, 50% of all rural, non-highway roads are rated between poor and fair. Roads in this condition have cracking, potholes and ruts, to the point that the TRIP report states they “often …

View Post

The Key to Successfully Converting Paved to Unpaved Roads – Part 2

In Gravel Roads, Road & Surface Management, Roads, Unpaved Roads by Bob Vitale

In a previous article, we looked at the growing trend of converting paved to unpaved roads. Unpaving rural, low-volume asphalt roads has financial and other benefits that are driving local road agencies to take this seemingly odd – yet innovative – step.  What are the challenges to converting paved to unpaved roads? How does Midwest’s solution address all of these …