News Releases

Date: Tuesday, September 19, 2006

Contacts:

Contact:	Company:	Phone:	Email:
Bill Brady	Cargill	952-742-6608	bill_brady@cargill.com
Jackie Renner	RCC	612-859-2626	rennercomm@aol.com
Anna Davey	WisDOT NW Region	715-392-7960	anna.davey@dot.state.wi.us

 

Call to schedule video or photography shoot of crews applying SafeLane ™ Surface Overlay on the northbound US 53 & westbound US 2 Interchange near Superior, Wis. September 19-September 29, weather permitting; and/or to arrange an interview with SafeLane Surface Overlay representative.

Click on http://www.cargillsafelane.com/news/media_tools.shtm and scroll to view animation and b-roll. Broadcast quality b-roll available upon request.

Wisconsin adds Third Test Site for New Technology to Make Roads and Bridges Safer in Winter

MINNEAPOLIS – The seasons are changing, and that means motorists in Wisconsin, Minnesota and across the Midwest will soon need to watch out for ice, snow and the other hazards that fall and winter driving can bring. Each year, adverse weather conditions contribute to an average of 1.4 million car accidents in this country, resulting in 7,000 deaths, more than 600,000 injuries, and $42 billion in economic loss, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

So, this fall the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) will add the state’s third test site of a new pavement overlay designed to keep ice away and drivers safer. The SafeLane ™ Surface Overlay system will be installed beginning Tuesday, September 19PthP on the northbound US 53 & westbound US 2 Interchange near Superior. The 53,000 square foot project, the largest SafeLane test site to date, includes both a bridge deck and road surface.

Here’s how the new technology licensed and marketed by Minnesota-based Cargill works: SafeLane is made up of a patented combination of epoxy and aggregate rock. Transportation workers “charge” the surface with their standard liquid anti-icing chemicals before frost or ice storms are expected. The SafeLane overlay acts like a rigid sponge, storing the chemicals inside, and then automatically releasing them as conditions develop for the formation of ice or snow. The result is safer roads with better mobility and less maintenance, because the overlay helps prevent frost or ice from ever forming on road or bridge surfaces, and keeps releasing the anti-icing chemicals over multiple events.

“Billions of tax dollars are spent each year to preserve and maintain roads and bridges. SafeLane can extend the life of roads and bridges by acting as a sealant that reduces the effects of chloride and water intrusion. More importantly, it can reduce accidents and save lives,” says Bob Persichetti, general manager for SafeLane Surface Overlay.

“We’re installing SafeLane at this site because of the number and severity of accidents occurring there,” says Anna Davey, safety coordinator, WisDOT NW Region. “Some of the 14 crashes over the past four years have involved drivers losing control on the structure and crossing over into merging traffic.” Davey also notes that rain tends to pool on the highways due to the slope of the roadways, adding, “One of the benefits of SafeLane we’ve seen on the Blatnik Bridge is that when it rains the water is being dispersed more evenly, so we’re seeing less hydroplaning. We’re hoping that will be an added benefit on this site as well.”

Wisconsin led the nation by installing the first SafeLane test site in 2003 on the Wolf River Bridge near Crandon. A second site followed in June 2005 on the US 53 northbound on-ramp to the I-535 Blatnik Bridge between Superior and Duluth, Minn. “Our experience with SafeLane has been excellent,” Davey notes. “There has not been a single crash on either the Wolf River or Blatnik Bridges since SafeLane was installed.” Both bridges had long histories of weather-related crashes before SafeLane.

Wisconsin’s experience mirrors those of other SafeLane test sites. An analysis of SafeLane’s performance during the 2005-2006 winter season found no weather-related accidents at all nine test sites studied. In many cases, this contrasted with multiple accidents on nearby untreated stretches of road or bridge deck. Almost all of the treated sites had a history of winter weather accidents. Leading snow and ice control authority Wilfred Nixon, president of Asset Insight Technologies and a professor of engineering at the University of Iowa, conducted the analysis concluding, “On the basis of the observations made during the 2005-06 winter, SafeLane overlay provides benefits in both safety and mobility under winter storm conditions, and those benefits may be attained with less chemical than would be needed for highway segments without the overlay.” A complete copy of the report, which was commissioned by Cargill, is available at www.cargillsafelane.com.

SafeLane is new technology unlike anything now being used. The Federal Highway Administration as part of its Innovative Bridge Research and Construction program recently awarded more than $550,000 to four states (Idaho, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Texas) to help finance SafeLane installations.

Transportation departments have been using epoxy overlays for three decades to extend the life of bridges by minimizing water seepage and intrusion of corrosive agents like chlorides. The Virginia Transportation Research Council’s Michael Sprinkel, a national expert in the design, construction and evaluation of epoxy overlays, notes that SafeLane provides all the benefits of standard epoxy overlays. “However,” Sprinkel adds, “the specific aggregate-chemical combination in SafeLane has the additional benefit of minimizing snow and ice-related crashes as well.”

The US 53/2 Interchange project near Superior marks the 17PthP installation (eight this season, nine previously) of SafeLane at sites in a dozen states. Safelane was invented after 10 years of research at Michigan Tech University (MTU).

 

About Cargill

Cargill is an international provider of food, agricultural and risk management products and services. With 149,000 employees in 63 countries, the company is committed to using its knowledge and experience to collaborate with customers to help them succeed. For more information, visit www.cargill.com.