Solar highways are finally becoming a reality in the United States, and we’re really excited.
In case you haven’t noticed, the Earth is basically going to Hell. If this blazing hot summer wasn’t proof enough that climate change is real and we are depleting the planet’s resources, then maybe the war for oil in the Middle East will light a fire under your ass. Solar energy is one of the biggest ways we can begin to make the Earth more eco-friendly, and Missouri of all places is slated to be the first state to install solar pavers on a public highway. That’s right, Missouri, the last place you’d expect, is the first American state to get a solar highway.
Developed by Solar Roadways, the company claims that replacing all of America’s roads and parking lots with solar pavers would generate more than three times the electricity needs of the entire country. Amen, amen, amen.
READ MORE: France Declares Rooftops Must Have Solar Panels or Gardens
The panels themselves are made of tractioned glass that you can walk and drive on, giving it a similar grip to that of asphalt. The new-fangled solar highway technology can be used to recharge electric vehicles, and include LED lights which could light up to warn oncoming traffic of animals crossing at night. The octagonal panels also contain heat tech that can help melt snow during winter, and best of all, they are impervious to potholes.
Frank Murray, a city planner from St Louis explains, “One of my good friends from high school died in a car accident when his car spiraled out of control on a snowy road. Travel during the winter can be really dangerous, so these solar panels would definitely help with that.” Safety first, right? Between the years of 2008-2010, there were an average of 467 fatalities in the United States related to icy roads. Around 20 of those occurred in Missouri.
Murray believes in the solar panels for mainstream solar highway availability, but also understands that there is a long road ahead, no pun intended (okay, pun intended, we love puns).
“Measures like these are difficult to implement, and take a very long time to catch on,” he says, adding that, “the benefits to solar paneled roads far outweigh the costs in the scheme of things. Right now we should definitely be thinking about the future, and how we can sustain the planet for coming generations.”
Implementing more solar highways in the USA is the wave of the future, and we’re endlessly excited about that.
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