M80 Upgrade – Project Profile

February 12, 2018

Project overview

The M80 is one of Melbourne’s busiest freeways, carrying approximately 110,000 vehicles per day. The M80 Upgrade was a $2.25 billion project, aimed at improving 38 kilometres of the Western and Metropolitan Ring Roads.

The Tulla Sydney Alliance (a partnership between VicRoads, Thiess, WSP – Parsons Brinckerhoff and Hyder, now Arcadis) who delivered the project chose to use recycled materials where possible to improve environmental and cost outcomes of the M80 Upgrade.

Recycled products supplied for the M80 Upgrade

Two sections of the M80 Upgrade were built using recycled materials. The first, 9.7 kilometres between the Calder Freeway and Sydney Road, used Class 2, 3 and 4 Recycled Concrete for road pavement base and sub base layers.

The second section was the two-kilometre eight-lane stretch between Furlong Road and Sunshine Avenue. In this section, Alex Fraser supplied Class 3 Cement Treated Crushed Concrete and Class 4 Crushed Concrete as base and sub base layers of the pavement. Recycled Sand was used as drainage filter material.

Alex Fraser supplied a total of 143,000 tonnes of Recycled Concrete to the project. The material was supplied in accordance with VicRoads specification section 820 and 821.

The complexity of working on widening an active freeway meant communication and delivery reliability were critical to meeting timelines.

Cost and carbon savings

Choosing Green Roads by Alex Fraser recycled materials saved 12,000 tonnes of material, or 297 less truck loads, and approximately 921 tonnes of carbon.