A transportation engineer has a simple, proactive solution to potholes — pave better roads.

Carleton University professor Abd El Halim says he invented a machine three decades ago which would prevent the potholes that plague Toronto roads, particularly in the winter and early spring. But despite what he says are test results showing its effectiveness, his invention hasn’t caught on.

“It’s not my fault it’s not being used, I’ve done everything a researcher can do,” El Halim said. “The road has been sick for 200 years, I can’t make you take the medicine.”

His invention, the AMIR road compactor, is named after El Halim’s eldest son, but also stands for Asphalt Multi-Integrated Roller.

Its secret is a rubber belt that allows a constant and consistent distribution of asphalt while paving roads. This is in contrast to most rollers, which have rigid, steel wheels that often vibrate and oscillate as they pave.

El Halim said rollers leave behind cracks which eventually become potholes. When water gets into the cracks and freezes into ice, it further breaks open the cracks. Winter weather accelerates the process.

“Complex (problems) don’t need complex solutions,” he said in an interview with the Star while he was in Toronto for an academic conference.

El Halim has recorded dozens of side-by-side tests comparing the AMIR to the typical roller. Each time, his machine leaves no cracks behind, while his other rollers do. In tests, the AMIR also produced roads that were more skid-proof than roads paved by traditional rollers.

El Halim built a prototype in the 1980s, and received international attention for the potential of his idea. His machine was used in the late 1990s in Australia for a project for the 2000 Olympics, but has had little commercial use since.

El Halim has a few ideas why his invention hasn’t caught on. Rollers cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, so companies are reluctant to buy another or not use the ones they have.

The original AMIR compactor went unused for over a decade, but in 2012, Tomlinson, a construction company, revived it to use on some bridge projects. That same year, Ontario’s Ministry of Transportation began to give El Halim research funding for the AMIR, which so far amounts to about $350,000. Tomlinson has also been involved in research and development for the AMIR.

In November, the City of Ottawa used the AMIR to construct a test section of a road in the city.

“The AMIR technology is unique in the world,” said ministry spokeperson Bob Nichols. “The AMIR III was tested in a side-by-side comparison with the most modern asphalt compaction equipment available . . . The AMIR III produced a superior quality product which is clearly visible and measurable.”

Nichols said the AMIR “has great potential” to extend the life of roads, and “save significant taxpayer dollars.” In 2016, an MTO analysis found that the province would save $50 million annually if roads on the MTOs highways could last even one year longer.

“The MTO is not planning on buying or specifying the use of AMIR asphalt rollers, but we are very interested in seeing the AMIR technology developed so that the superior quality they produce can eventually be specified on our contracts,” said Nichols.

The next step is further commercialization. El Halim plans to sell kits to companies that will convert their rollers into ones more akin to the AMIR. He patented the kit with Tomlinson.

“It’s like buying a tie, you just need the right one for your shirt instead of buying a whole suit,” he said.

The kit is a cheaper accessory that businesses can adopt, while a machine may be too big an investment.

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El Halim says the AMIR is easier to operate than traditional rollers. He claims anyone who can drive a car can operate it, and that it is far more efficient than traditional rollers. To pave a road, El Halim says traditional rollers will go over the area about 26 times. The AMIR only needs eight.

For all of its success, El Halim says the AMIR is not all that advanced, and calls it “1980s technology.”

However, El Halim says the roller technology hasn’t changed much since the early 20th century.