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Edited by HurtfulTurkey: 6/2/2014 9:19:34 PM
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Solar roadways will never happen, & are stupid.

Just gonna tl;dr this shit since this needs to get cleared up, fast. -Each tile costs roughly $3,000 per square foot, not including cost of maintenance and installation (holy shit that's a lot!) -Roads are not an ideal surface for solar panels because they are frequently covered by cars, dirt, oil, water, etc -Glass is unsuitable to drive on -The government would need to buy a separate power line system (cannot be simply "plugged into" existing power lines) -Solar panels are optimally angled towards the sun, not straight up -The issue with solar isn't the lack of space to put panels (they go very well on roofs, parking cover, etc.), it's the current cost of producing and maintaining panels vs. the value of the energy they generate Watch the video for some more. Solar roadways were never going to happen. Maybe next time you guys will use a bit more scrutiny after watching a video with a caricatured person saying "whoooaaa" liked a stoned dumbass, or telling you that the world is going to look like Tron.

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  • Man, I am really getting tired of having to combat these faulty points left-and-right whenever someone says this is a ridiculous idea. The answers to literally all of those problems can be found in either the FAQ. The only figure that isn't answered there is a bit harder to find; the cost. Solar panel roads at current cost about [url=http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2014/05/30/solar-roadways-indiegogo_n_5416811.html]70 dollars per square foot,[/url] which is admittedly more expensive than asphalt at around 15 dollars a square foot, but the price tag is going to go down as they become more prevalent and as they come out of the prototype stage, which they are currently in. It's also nowhere near the ridiculous 3000 dollars a square foot you're proposing. And actually, installation is relatively cheap as currently-existing roads are to be used as the foundation. On top of that, maintenance costs are reduced from one or more days to just a few hours, as maintenance consists of popping a broken panel out and another one in. So both of those are moot. Thankfully people who don't know anything about engineering aren't running the Federal Highway Administration, (who have contracted these people twice already) aren't distributing the World Technology Award and aren't in charge of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. (Who have given them an award themselves) If they were then all of the potential in this new technology might be lost before it even gets off the ground.

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    9 Replies in this Sub-Thread
    • Edited by HurtfulTurkey: 6/2/2014 11:52:36 PM
      [quote]Solar panel roads at current cost about [url=http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2014/05/30/solar-roadways-indiegogo_n_5416811.html]70 dollars per square foot,[/url][/quote] *current estimation with zero cost justification. The reported cost per panel was $7,000, and they're about two square feet, leading to my rough cost per square foot. [quote]installation is relatively cheap[/quote]Yeah, cost estimates for even a generously small amount of road coverage is staggering. [quote]maintenance consists of popping a broken panel out and another one in[/quote]Sure, but that's one hell of an expensive pothole. [quote]Federal Highway Administration, (who have contracted these people twice already) aren't distributing the World Technology Award and aren't in charge of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. (Who have given them an award themselves)[/quote] Oh, a couple awards and a petty grant that gets handed out regularly? Is that why this idea has existed for 8 years and they still need to beg on Indiegogo? It's just nonsense.

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