Illinois Tollway funds $1.3 Million ICT Life Cycle Assessment Project

The Illinois Tollway announced that it will partner with the Illinois Center for Transportation (ICT) to develop life cycle assessment tools to measure the environmental impact of roadway construction. The Tollway Board of Directors approved a $1.3 million, three-year agreement with ICT for this project.

“The Tollway is committed to making environmental responsibility and sustainability part of everything we do—from planning to implementation to maintenance,” said Illinois Tollway Executive Director Kristi Lafleur. “We are excited that these innovative new tools will not only help us better integrate sustainable practices into our construction projects, but they will also allow us to evaluate their effectiveness during construction and beyond.”

The life cycle assessment tools will assess every stage in the lifespan of a roadway or bridge, from the use of materials to construction to maintenance and repairs to disposal or recycling. The assessments gather energy and material use data, which will assist in tracking, monitoring, and evaluating environmental impact.

ICT researchers will develop models for tire-rolling resistance on pavements and its impact on fuel usage and emission. Throughout the life cycle of any roadway section, the Tollway will be able to evaluate the environmental impact of any roadway section. These tools will provide the Tollway a more complete data set, which will lead to more informed, environmentally responsible decisions.

Imad Al-Qadi, ICT director and Founder Professor of Engineering in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) at Illinois will serve as principal investigator for the project. Other CEE research team members include:

• Jeremy Guest, Assistant Professor
• Yanfeng Ouyang, Associate Professor and Paul F. Kent Endowed Faculty Scholar
• Hasan Ozer, Research Assistant Professor
• Jeffery Roesler, Professor and Illinois-American Concrete & Pavement Association Faculty Scholar
• Arthur Schmidt, Research Assistant Professor

Established in 2005, the Illinois Center for Transportation is headquartered within the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and located at the Advanced Transportation Research and Engineering Laboratory (ATREL), one of the top transportation research facilities in the nation. ICT conducts sponsored research for the FHWA, Illinois DOT, Illinois Tollway, EPA, and several other government agencies and industry partners.
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Contact: Imad Al-Qadi, director, Illinois Center for Transportation, Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 217/893-0704, x224.

Nichole Evans, external relations coordinator, Illinois Center for Transportation, 217/300-3577.

If you have any questions about the College of Engineering, or other story ideas, contact Rick Kubetz, editor, Engineering Communications Office, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 217/244-7716.