Marlborough Highways has delivered one of London’s largest low carbon resurfacing schemes to date for Barnet Council, working in partnership with Holcim UK and Low Carbon Materials.

The scheme was developed in response to Barnet Council’s ambition to reduce carbon emissions from routine resurfacing works on live streets, supporting its BarNET ZERO programme and wider commitment to becoming a net zero borough by 2042.

Delivered across three streets in just six days, the works combined lower carbon asphalt materials with planned changes to transport, plant and site delivery, achieving clear and measurable reductions in tCO₂e without affecting the programme or network operation.

Marlborough worked closely with Barnet Council to turn the brief into a practical highways scheme, coordinating the supply chain and identifying where carbon could be reduced across both the asphalt specification and the delivery method.

This approach combined Holcim SuperLow asphalt in both the binder and wearing courses with ACLA, a carbon negative additive developed by Low Carbon Materials. ACLA was used within the binder course to reduce embodied carbon, while maintaining the performance required for a live carriageway.

Alongside the material innovation, Marlborough built carbon reduction into day-to-day delivery. Electric plant was prioritised where feasible, including an electric roller and electric disc cutter, supported by electric vans charged through a 100% renewable tariff. HVO-powered plant was used where electric or lower carbon alternatives were not viable.

The completed works reduced the estimated carbon footprint from 62.34 tCO₂e to as low as 4.49 tCO₂e, representing a saving of up to 57.85 tCO₂e. The majority of this reduction was achieved through material selection, with further savings delivered through plant and transport changes.

The scheme demonstrates how lower carbon approaches can be integrated into routine highways maintenance, while still meeting the demands of a live network and standard resurfacing programme.

Daniela Pometti, Head of Highways Asset Management at the London Borough of Barnet, said:

“From our first discussion, Marlborough Highways embraced the brief and helped us explore the market for alternative materials. Together we developed a practical sustainability scheme, and the collaboration across suppliers through Marlborough made a real difference. We are pleased to trial innovative materials in Barnet that have not been widely used elsewhere in the country.”

James Rowntree, Business Improvement Manager at Marlborough Highways, said:

“This scheme is a great example of what can be achieved when a client sets a clear ambition and the supply chain works together to make it practical. Barnet Council challenged us to look at how carbon could be reduced through routine resurfacing, and our role was to help turn that ambition into a deliverable highways scheme. By working closely with Holcim UK and Low Carbon Materials, we were able to combine lower carbon materials with changes to plant, transport and delivery, while still completing the works within a standard programme.
“What is really valuable now is that we can take the lessons learned from Barnet and share them more widely, helping give other clients confidence to explore lower carbon options in future schemes.”