Introducing
How it works
Why not just fix the potholes?
Budget: Most potholes are on city streets and rural roads, each belongs to a respective municipal authority with different priorities and budgets. This leads us to the next problem.
Politics: Whilst the city would rather save money by making long-term repairs to likely pothole hotspots than wait to patch them after, 'Cash-strapped' municipal councils employ reactive ‘patch and dash’ approach that repairs potholes individually, in a hurry, and sometimes in wet weather, leading to them quickly breaking down and reappearing.
Lack of a Systemic Approach: Fixing the potholes is only scratching on the surface of the problem. To rid city streets of potholes requires a systemic approach that includes but not limited to predicting poor drainage areas, weather cycles, planning traffic frequency and load, planned preventative road maintenance, etc.
How about other Warning Systems?
Traffic Cones
would float away during the floods
Road Barriers
a potential danger as they block off a big part of the road
Other advantages of the coloured potholes
Budget: Most potholes are on city streets and rural roads, each belongs to a respective municipal authority with different priorities and budgets. This leads us to the next problem.
Politics: Whilst the city would rather save money by making long-term repairs to likely pothole hotspots than wait to patch them after, 'Cash-strapped' municipal councils employ reactive ‘patch and dash’ approach that repairs potholes individually, in a hurry, and sometimes in wet weather, leading to them quickly breaking down and reappearing.
Lack of a Systemic Approach: Fixing the potholes is only scratching on the surface of the problem. To rid city streets of potholes requires a systemic approach that includes but not limited to predicting poor drainage areas, weather cycles, planning traffic frequency and load, planned preventative road maintenance, etc.
Other advantages of the coloured potholes
Low cost: As in 2016, for a surface of 1 m2 (the size of a big pothole), we would need around 1 kg of hydrochromic paint, which cost 10 USD. In comparison, a pair of regular-size plastic road barriers that would sufficiently covers a single pothole costs 24 USD.
(Souce: Alibaba)
Logistics: A 20 kg plastic bucket measures 20 x 15cm whereas a plastic barrier stands around 30 x 100 cm. Storing and transporting the paints therefore would take less space, hence more cost and labour efficient
Different levels of warning: We painted the potholes with different colours to reflect different depths. Depending on the colours, automobilists could consider the levels of danger in real time and choose to adapt their speeds in case they can't avoid the holes.
Testing
Real-time Warning Levels
We tested with 3 different colours for 3 different levels of danger. As drivers would have little time to react to the danger ahead, the colours were chosen to intuitively reflects the levels of potential danger.
Green
Small: 1-5cm
Blue
Medium: 6-10cm
Orange
Deep: > 10cm
Visibility
One of the most important challenges were improving the night visibility of the coating, as in Vietnam, night time traffic remains as much as during the day.
To boost night visibility, we add a transparent reflective coat in the mix. When light from the headlamps or street lamps hits the surface, the pigment is enhanced.
Night: Up to 15 m in low light condition
Durability
The reflective coating also allows the sensitive varnish to last up to 3 months, throughout summer, when it would be exposed to higher levels of ultraviolet rays from the Sun. This coincidentally, is also the duration of the monsoon season.
As the proposal wasn't designed to be a long-term solution, we were satisfied with this result.
First month
Highly visible
Second month
Adequately visible
Third month
Less visible
Reception
The idea was met with enthusiasm from local community and authority. We were off to a good start.
The next step would be to find a long-term supplier and present the proposal to the city municipal.
Results
On our way to the meeting with the district's urban planning department, we were informed that the project was axed due to new budget constraints and without any detailed explanation.
Vague as it sounds, that's just how things work in Vietnam, politically. As a consolation, we went back and continued to refine and develop the idea, waiting for a better occasion to bring it back to life.
Phibious
