World’s First Solar Road Opens In France

[c3k]

I'll love it when the first snowplow forgets to "raise plow" while clearing the road and showers the shoulders with solar chips.

 

[Gigus Fire]

this makes sense business wise.
A solar pannel company focusing on roofs can only install so many roofs because typically an installation will probably last 15-50 years. It's fairly rare for a roof to get damaged.
Now a road? They tear up. They ice up. There are explosions, wrecks, etc.
Asphalt and cement works because it's cheap.
Some whacky solar road makes clueless people feel like they're doing something good. But for the company making them it's a cash cow. No matter what the roads will have to be "repaved" or replaced if solar every 5-10 years. That ensures they'll be constantly being paid to produce these shitty of an idea product.

 

[sfsuphysics]

First set of winter chains will chew through that.

Does it even snow there? Seriously. There are many parts of the world where "winter chains" (or hell winter anything driving related) simply is not a thing to worry about.

That said, yeah, huge waste IMO, a smaller patch as a test field would have been great. But the reality is roofs are probably a better option. Give 140 homes a covered porch that is 20 square meters and call it a day.

 

[MDboyz]

Solar Roadways might even be worse, they can't even get it successfully working with a small patch of panels in a sidewalk. They need to work on making solar panels cheaper and putting them places that make even the slightest bit of sense before they try to make roads and walkways out of them.

They lost me when they have the guy in 'orange' shirt to talk ... maybe that is a good color for him when this is known as a total scam ...

 

[nilepez]

Does it even snow there? Seriously. There are many parts of the world where "winter chains" (or hell winter anything driving related) simply is not a thing to worry about.

That said, yeah, huge waste IMO, a smaller patch as a test field would have been great. But the reality is roofs are probably a better option. Give 140 homes a covered porch that is 20 square meters and call it a day.

1 KM isn't very much and they already tested in parking lots. Maybe this fails, but you won't know if you don't try.

 

[krotch]

Indeed. I did mention that(although not quite as specifically) in my previous post. The whole thing about this just being the R&D phase is utterly absurd, because if we can't cheaply and reliably stick solar panels everywhere else(again, rooftops), why pick one of the least practical locations to ever put the things? Even the idea of putting them in parking lots is silly, because except on the weekends in business parks, parking lots tend to either have lots of vehicles... or they're not that large in the first place. Exceptions to this are of course things like stadiums and amusement parks in the off season, but for all of the solar panels used to pave those parking lots with, they could have been put on rooftops instead. About the only place less practical for solar panels in most circumstances would be the ocean floor.

And sure, getting away from oil would be nice. But that doesn't mean replacing asphalt with solar panels is the logical way to do it, instead of installing those solar panels pretty much anywhere else that would allow for greater and more reliable energy production.

I think a parking lot is a perfect place to put them. But not on the ground. Build a structure above the parking lot to place the panels. Setup more light poles, run wire between them all and build a grid out of wires. Attach panels to the wires. Viola! The panels can block the sun a bit to keep cars cool in the summer, helps block rain/snow/hail/etc. You don't have cars driving over it, and it should be a bit easier to maintain, since they aren't imbedded into the ground. Setup a battery bank in the middle of the parking lot to store the power to run the lights at night too.

Now panels in the ground, where cars drive. Not the best idea.

 

[Prisoner849]

Does it even snow there? Seriously. There are many parts of the world where "winter chains" (or hell winter anything driving related) simply is not a thing to worry about.

Sorta covered this reply here.

There is nothing new under the sun...on page 2.

 

[M76]

No what's offensive is that a significant percentage of [H] posters are railing against R&D/science. I guess Luddites only like tech if it's already completely developed. Sadly that's not how R&D/science works.

Solar freaking roadways. This is not science. It's wishful thinking picked up by a few know nothing pseudo celebrities.

We already know that the square block doesn't fit into the circular hole. There is no need for anyone to try to fit it anyway.

If you don't want to try put things where they're known not to work at full capacity or even efficiently then you're a luddite? You don't seem to know what luddite means. It means the hating of all technology. This is just hate of stupid usage of resources and technology that can be debunked with high school physics knowledge. You know R&D starts with a feasibility study. One thing the freaking stupid roadways people failed to do. But hey uneducated people are still giving them money, so why not live off of it?

 

[nightfly]

They want to use roadways because they're public property; every cent MADE from it becomes spendable by politicians. Every cent needed to make and support it comes from taxpayers. Put those panels on people's roofs, and you have to pay those people a cut to do it.

Now a road? They tear up. They ice up. There are explosions, wrecks, etc.
<snip> No matter what the roads will have to be "repaved" or replaced if solar every 5-10 years. That ensures they'll be constantly being paid to produce these shitty of an idea product.

Ahhh, there we go. Making roadways under constant lane closures and under construction. Oh, wait, I forgot, you get to make them all toll roads too, so you get to charge them a fee to sit in the traffic of the 'under construction' roadways, too. Welcome to New Jersey (where rumor has it, Chris Christie's punishment for Bridgegate is, after this term in office, to become a toll collector at rotating highway locations going into Manhattan for eternity).

 

[Nenu]

Who the hell let this happen?
Stupid idea of the century.

Roads are hard enough to keep running without adding further reasons to close them.
If tarmac was better replaced with something else, we would be using it.
So it wont be safer thats for sure and will be unlikely to last as long, making the first points even worse.
The electricity and environmental savings will pale into insignificance compared to the cost/materials of putting it down, maintaining it, loss of local business and being an unsafe road.
That says nothing of putting solar cells in a dirty place.
Unless they have a surface that self cleans, but then it will also have none stick properties for vehicles as well!
Moronic.