Hi there!

Today's article is about the world's first solar roads set up in France.  

France in December 2016 launched the world's first "solar highway", a road paved with solar panels which provides enough energy to power the street lights of the Normandy, a small town of Tourouvre. The one-kilometer "Wattway" is covered with 2,800 square meters of resin coated solar panels, which is connected to a nearby Power grid.

"This new use of solar energy takes advantage of large swathes of road infrastructure already in use... to produce electricity without taking up new real estate? Environment Minister Segolene Royal said.

An average of 2,000 vehicles use the road in Tourouvre every day, testing the resistance of the boards for the project carried out by French firm Colas. Colas says that in principle France could become independent of fossil fuels by just covering a fourth of its million kilometers of streets with solar panels.

The idea, which is also under exploration in other countries such as Germany, the Netherlands and the United States, is that roadways are occupied by vehicles just around 20 percent of the time, providing vast expanses to utilize the sun?s rays.

Skeptics are waiting to see whether the panels are tough enough to withstand the ravages of time and climate, and in addition the beating they will take from huge trucks.

One drawback of the idea is that solar panels work the best when angled towards the sun, as on inclined rooftops, than they are laid flat on the streets. The economic viability of this idea is far from being resolved. Every kilowatt-peak - the unit of measure for solar energy- produced by Wattway costs 17 euros, compared with 1.30 euros for a major rooftop establishment.

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