Old tires could build pothole-resistant roads, solve disposal problem

By ASHLEY WEIGEL
Capital News Service
LANSING — Old tires may pave the way for new Michigan road repairs. Gov. Rick Snyder proposed spending $1.3 billion on road repairs in his first State of the State Address in 2011.  So far, no one has found that kind of funding. But the Muskegon County Road Commission and other groups are investigating how to more cheaply fix Michigan roads with tires in a way that benefits the entire state. The advantages: repairs can be cheaper, make roads more pothole-resistant and help the state get rid of a tire disposal headache. The Muskegon County Road Commission won a $327,513 grant from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality’s scrap tire market development grant to explore the solution.