Developed by the Association of Directors of Environment, Economy, Planning and Transport (ADEPT), Live Labs 2 follows the hugely successful Live Labs 1.
Amey has been working with North Lanarkshire Council, West Sussex County Council and South Gloucestershire Council to secure two projects focused on reducing carbon from the operation and maintenance of future and existing local roads assets.
OVERVIEW
North Lanarkshire Council, Transport for West Midlands, Amey and partners have been successful in a bid to create a UK Centre of Excellence for material decarbonisation in local roads, one of the four themes. The research and innovation centre will develop a materials testing programme to identify and deploy the latest technology for road construction and maintenance, in addition to testing and deploying recycled materials from other industries.
South Gloucestershire Council and West Sussex County Council, with support from Amey Consulting and partners, have been successful in a bid to develop a ‘green carbon laboratory’. This project will examine the role that highways ‘green’ assets can play in providing a source of materials and fuels to decarbonise highway operations, for example, using biomass from green waste to create alternative fuels and asphalt additives.
BENEFITS
- ADEPT and DfT have awarded 4.5m in funding to North Lanarkshire Council and partners to create the UK Centre of Excellence for Materials Decarbonisation in Local Roads. The new Centre of Excellence will break down siloed working practices, review, and trial leading innovation, and bring the industry together to tackle one of the largest challenges facing the UK roads sector on the path to carbon net zero. This will help accelerate the adoption of material innovations across the sector, giving local authorities the confidence to adopt sustained decarbonisation solutions that the industry desperately needs, whilst also improving efficiencies and costs.
- South Gloucestershire Council and West Sussex County Council, with support from Amey Consulting - work is currently ongoing and in the first stage of development.