Coloured tarmac for tunnels

Why use coloured tarmac in tunnels?

Light coloured asphalt used on cycle paths in Europe for improved visibility, especially at night

Across Europe, the use of coloured tarmac in road tunnels has helped to cut lighting costs without compromising driver safety. Reflective road surfacing technology has the potential to combine with lighting technologies to deliver better driver visibility as well as offering the potential to reduce lighting costs.

The light reflectivity and durability of Mastertint coloured tarmac is achieved by incorporating special aggregates, light coloured pigments and high-quality polymers and binders to enhance the mechanical stability of the asphalt mix. This light reflecting asphalt ensures it is suitable for all heavy trafficked areas. There is the potential of significant cost-savings of energy bills to local authorities in the UK, if light coloured tarmac is used in tunnels, as well as bus and cycle lanes and inner city paved areas.

Markusberg tunnel

When reflective asphalt was used for road surfacing in Luxembourg's 1575 metre Markusberg tunnel, the energy savings lead to payback of the extra costs by less than 5 years. Here are the headline savings relating to the Markusberg tunnel:

Source	Savings/ annum
Electrical	€39,000
Lighting maintenance	€16,000
Energy reduction	140 houses' electricity

What did our results show?

Tarmac has now trialled light reflecting Mastertint in the UK. This trial took place at Tarmac’s head office in Wolverhampton. A section of our heavily trafficked access road was surfaced with Mastertint coloured tarmac.

Tests on the energy saving properties of the product have been carried out by lighting specialist, Urbis. Their conclusion after testing was that by using the product, street light energy reduction costs (outside of tunnels) can be reduced by 53%.

Not only does using light reflective asphalt save you money on your lighting bill, but also goes along way in reducing your carbon footprint, plus with the added benefit of making roads and tunnels safer to travel.

Mastertint coloured tarmac benefits