Skip to main content

VIDEO: Concrete paving - you’ve come a long way, baby!

It’s 1948. The grand scheme of creating an Interstate Highway system in the US is still barely a twinkle in President Dwight Eisenhower’s military eye. Highway construction improved greatly in the late 1950s and early 1960s as the American contractors became more mechanized and therefore efficient at laying roads faster and of better quality. But how did they build a road back then in 1948? Thanks to Encyclopaedia Britannica Films, we have a movie of just how a concrete highway was created. The constr
July 14, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
It’s 1948. The grand scheme of creating an Interstate Highway system in the US is still barely a twinkle in President Dwight Eisenhower’s military eye. Highway construction improved greatly in the late 1950s and early 1960s as the American contractors became more mechanized and therefore efficient at laying roads faster and of better quality.

But how did they build a road back then in 1948?

Thanks to Encyclopaedia Britannica Films, we have a movie of just how a concrete highway was created. The construction site looked more like a chain gang from a nearby prison that a professionally done infrastructure project.

Viewers just might be able to feel the sun’s heat as workers toil into the long day.

If this video piqued your curiosity about road building projects back then, %$Linker: 2 External <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?><dictionary /> 0 0 0 oLinkExternal click here Visit youtube Page false https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=neaoGclvips false false%> to see a 1951 film from the Bethlehem Steel Company. Things have apparently moved on since 1948 and steel is making inroads. At least this film is in colour.

Related Content

  • Matest high production materials testing
    January 6, 2017
    Material testing equipment manufacturer Matest says its reputation for high production capacity, quality products, fast delivery times, and qualified technical support is acknowledged worldwide. The company offers advanced solutions for onsite and laboratory tests on bitumen, asphalt, concrete, cement, mortar, aggregates, rocks, soil, and steel, representing the ideal partner for anyone working in the construction and civil engineering industries. Its extensive range of material testing equipment is designe
  • Matest high production materials testing
    April 8, 2013
    Material testing equipment manufacturer Matest says its reputation for high production capacity, quality products, fast delivery times, and qualified technical support is acknowledged worldwide. The company offers advanced solutions for onsite and laboratory tests on bitumen, asphalt, concrete, cement, mortar, aggregates, rocks, soil, and steel, representing the ideal partner for anyone working in the construction and civil engineering industries. Its extensive range of material testing equipment is designe
  • Plans are in hand for a key UK parking exhibition
    December 13, 2012
    Plans are well in hand for the Traffex and Parkex exhibitions being held in the UK. This bi-annual event is now in its 26th year, is a three day exhibition combining two trade shows, Traffex and Parkex. Traffex is an international traffic engineering, road safety, parking and highway maintenance exhibition. Meanwhile Parkex is Europe’s largest dedicated parking exhibition. The events are co-located and will take place in Hall 5 at the NEC Birmingham from 16th – 18th April 2013. Traffex and Parkex 2013 are
  • DX300 and DX340 get stage IIIB engines at INTERMAT
    January 6, 2017
    Doosan’s DX300LC-3 and DX340LC-3 excavators get the Korean maker’s DL08K common rail six-cylinder turbocharged diesel engine meeting stage IIIB emission regulations thanks to EGR and DPF technologies.