Sunny side of the street

摘要

Solar panels by the roadside are becoming an increasingly familiar sight, but actually forming the road surface? That is the brainchild of Scott Brusaw, an electrical engineer from Idaho, who has recently raised $2.2m through a crowd-funding campaign to develop the concept. Solar Roadways involves encasing smart solar panels in double-layered, bomb-resistant, bulletproof glass capable of withstanding 114kg. According to Brusaw, who devised the concept with his wife, it would be able to generate three times the electricity currently used in the US. It would also help prevent accidents by melting snow and ice, alert drivers to debris in the road with solar-powered LED lights and even collect storm water.