Nigeria makes a strong case for sustainable concrete roads

With only 20 percent of the well over 300,000 kilometres of road in Nigeria paved and in good motorable condition, the state of the roads infrastructure in the country is not only critical but also worrisome. It is critical and worrisome because the importance of roads in any economy cannot be over-emphasised. Asphalt and bitumen have been the dominant construction materials and these materials are not sustainable in the long run.

The cement concrete roads may attract higher initial costs than asphalt pavements, the life cycle cost analysis – which takes into account the initial capital cost of construction and the cost of maintenance and rehabilitation to keep the road in a serviceable state – suggests that in the long-run, cement concrete roads are more sustainable and cost-efficient.

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