Petition to stop practice of "surface dressing" on roads
Discussion
As someone who is constantly infuriated by the practice of "surface dressing" (application of bitumen and small stones to resurface roads), and the mess it causes to paintwork, chipped windscreens and the other dangers to bikers, I came across this petition to put a stop to this ineffective and wasteful method.
Having pestered my local council numerous times with nonsense responses in return and no action, I decided it would be great to get fellow motorists supporting the cause and adding pressure via the relevant minister.
Please, if you care about your pride and joy and fellow road users' safety (not to mention our tax money!), then please click on the following link to sign this petition:
https://www.change.org/p/highways-agency-let-s-sto...
Having pestered my local council numerous times with nonsense responses in return and no action, I decided it would be great to get fellow motorists supporting the cause and adding pressure via the relevant minister.
Please, if you care about your pride and joy and fellow road users' safety (not to mention our tax money!), then please click on the following link to sign this petition:
https://www.change.org/p/highways-agency-let-s-sto...
Edited by Belge on Friday 24th June 16:19
I'll drive at a snail's pace after the dressing has been applied and still get paint chips and tar on the car. Councils often use contractors who are not checked as to whether they have swept sufficiently, which means you are left with debris for weeks after application. Councils may be cash-strapped, but if they laid and repaired roads properly in the first place then they wouldn't waste money on an annual basis for such a temporary improvement (not to mention what they pay in compensation for damaged cars). Typical short-sightedness...
Good to see some helpful and insightful comments, I'll be sure to highlight some of the newer options that seem to be making their way in to the head of roads in Aberdeenshire. Whether a petition such as this is effective or not is down to the publicity one creates with it. That aside, if this practice annoys you as much as it does me, then at the very least, please sign it. In the meantime, if anyone has a steam roller to sell, let me know as it is probably a much more suitable daily driver for our roads up here!
Having challenged my local council directly on the issue, I have had a couple of inadequate responses, the latest of which you can read below. If the practice is to remain, then I ask that they at least sweep the excess chippings shortly after the bedding in period (current practice is to often leave it or if they are busy, leaving the mess for over a week.
Re: Surface Dressing within Aberdeenshire
Further to your correspondence with Scott Walker, Principal Roads Engineer, on the
above issue, this has now been passed to myself to review the information given.
The practice of surface dressing is two-fold: to improve road surface friction, and to
seal the road surface from the ingress of water. The former improves the
serviceability (function) of the road, and the latter improves, or extends the road life.
As you will be aware, Councils are under greater financial pressures than ever
before, and ensuring that we derive greatest benefit from every pound we spend is of
utmost importance. To ensure we deliver best value for spend on road surface
maintenance, Aberdeenshire Council has developed a Roads Asset Management
Plan, and Road Deterioration model. The Plan aligns with national research and
guidance – one of the key points being that maximising preventative maintenance
(such as surface dressing) reduces the need for reactive maintenance (patching)
and delays the need for structural maintenance (resurfacing or reconstruction). The
deterioration model allows us to predict future road condition with varying funding
(and therefore works) options.
I recognise that surface dressing is not popular with road users for the period
immediately after its application, and we endeavour to inform motorists with publicity
and site signing. However, the long-term benefits of a substantial surface dressing
programme are well established. Aberdeenshire’s commitment to surface dressing is
probably the single most important factor in our roads being consistently rated as
amongst the best in Scotland (this assessment is carried out by a third party across
the whole of Scotland using automated road surface surveying equipment).
Having reviewed the correspondence from Scott, I believe that he has explained the
process and the rationale behind why the Council carries out this type of
maintenance. This does mean that he will have nothing further to add to subsequent
emails on the same subject and these communications will not be acknowledged.
The Council takes pride in the way in which we deliver our services including how we
deal with complaints. I hope that this letter indicates that we have dealt with your
complaint in a satisfactory way.
Now that you have completed our complaints procedure, if you remain dissatisfied
with the manner in which your complaint has been dealt with, you have the right to
ask the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO) to consider your complaint.
The SPSO is the final stage about complaints for most organisations providing public
services in Scotland. Their service is independent, free and confidential.
The SPSO cannot normally look at complaints:
• more than 12 months after you first became aware of the matter you
want to complain about OR
• that have been or are being considered in court.
Address: Freepost SPSO
Telephone: 0800 377 7330
Website: http://www.spso.org.uk/contact/index.php
I trust you find this to be in order but if you have any queries regarding the content of
this letter, or if you require further information regarding the Aberdeenshire Council
complaints procedure, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Yours Sincerely
Philip Leiper I.Eng FIHE.
Roads Manager Formartine, Garioch and Kincardine & Mearns
Re: Surface Dressing within Aberdeenshire
Further to your correspondence with Scott Walker, Principal Roads Engineer, on the
above issue, this has now been passed to myself to review the information given.
The practice of surface dressing is two-fold: to improve road surface friction, and to
seal the road surface from the ingress of water. The former improves the
serviceability (function) of the road, and the latter improves, or extends the road life.
As you will be aware, Councils are under greater financial pressures than ever
before, and ensuring that we derive greatest benefit from every pound we spend is of
utmost importance. To ensure we deliver best value for spend on road surface
maintenance, Aberdeenshire Council has developed a Roads Asset Management
Plan, and Road Deterioration model. The Plan aligns with national research and
guidance – one of the key points being that maximising preventative maintenance
(such as surface dressing) reduces the need for reactive maintenance (patching)
and delays the need for structural maintenance (resurfacing or reconstruction). The
deterioration model allows us to predict future road condition with varying funding
(and therefore works) options.
I recognise that surface dressing is not popular with road users for the period
immediately after its application, and we endeavour to inform motorists with publicity
and site signing. However, the long-term benefits of a substantial surface dressing
programme are well established. Aberdeenshire’s commitment to surface dressing is
probably the single most important factor in our roads being consistently rated as
amongst the best in Scotland (this assessment is carried out by a third party across
the whole of Scotland using automated road surface surveying equipment).
Having reviewed the correspondence from Scott, I believe that he has explained the
process and the rationale behind why the Council carries out this type of
maintenance. This does mean that he will have nothing further to add to subsequent
emails on the same subject and these communications will not be acknowledged.
The Council takes pride in the way in which we deliver our services including how we
deal with complaints. I hope that this letter indicates that we have dealt with your
complaint in a satisfactory way.
Now that you have completed our complaints procedure, if you remain dissatisfied
with the manner in which your complaint has been dealt with, you have the right to
ask the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO) to consider your complaint.
The SPSO is the final stage about complaints for most organisations providing public
services in Scotland. Their service is independent, free and confidential.
The SPSO cannot normally look at complaints:
• more than 12 months after you first became aware of the matter you
want to complain about OR
• that have been or are being considered in court.
Address: Freepost SPSO
Telephone: 0800 377 7330
Website: http://www.spso.org.uk/contact/index.php
I trust you find this to be in order but if you have any queries regarding the content of
this letter, or if you require further information regarding the Aberdeenshire Council
complaints procedure, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Yours Sincerely
Philip Leiper I.Eng FIHE.
Roads Manager Formartine, Garioch and Kincardine & Mearns
Coppice - taking a slightly more educated view on these things, if you do a job properly in the first place, you usually benefit from (in this case) longevity and greater durability without spending any more (or little extra). This means there is no sacrifice on what you could spend on more important things like health care and education because your aren't repairing or re-doing the work as frequently. Our high street is already bald in places and it was only surface dressed 4 weeks ago!
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