Challenge

The new Park and Ride scheme at Martlesham is one of Suffolk County Council’s top priority transport schemes – it is the third Park and Ride to be built serving Ipswich, offering sustainable transport alternatives to the car, and is the first large-scale permeable block paving project to be undertaken by the Local Authority.

The key challenge for the project was to incorporate sustainable drainage elements into the overall design of the scheme that would address key environmental and landscape considerations and reflect the sustainability credentials of Park and Ride. A complete paving solution was also required to create a surface of high industrial strength to withstand heavy vehicles and a pedestrian area with high durability and aesthetic properties.

Solution

Marshalls provided a complete landscaping package to Suffolk County Council including 1,400 m2 of Eskoo Six block paving, 1,300 m2 of Conservation paving units, Keyblok concrete block paving and Speedcheck in Natural Grey. The project also utilised 14,000 m2 of Priora – Marshalls’ innovative system of permeable block paving which contributes to a sustainable urban drainage solution (SUDS). The unique shape of Priora blocks creates voids, which allow surface water to filter through the aggregate of the pavement, reducing the requirement for additional drainage systems whilst also recharging the natural ground water.

The high strength Eskoo Six paving has good load transfer characteristics ideal for industrial pavements with a high level of vehicle overrun. The aesthetic properties of both Keyblok and Conservation X paving enable it to blend in with a variety of landscapes, making it ideal for pedestrian environments. Speedcheck was also used to create kerb-to-kerb road humps for traffic calming.

Benefits

Marshalls’ Priora system provided a drainage solution with unique environmental benefits. Hydrocarbons within the sub-base break down contaminated run-off water, and any spillages remain contained within a small area and do not get channelled into local river ecosystems. Recent product performance tests at the Martlesham Park and Ride, which imitated a 20 year in-service life span, showed that the interlocking joint profile succeeded in maintaining the stability of the paver surface despite the flexible nature of the bedding and base aggregates used.

Simon Curl, Project Manager for Suffolk County Council, said: “The use of permeable block paving on this scale is a first for this authority. The product provides high aesthetic appeal and an innovative solution to surface water management.”
 

The experiment

Years after it's first install, Marshalls returned to the project to test the infiltration of permeable paving, watch our video to see the amazing results...