Why are our roads rubbish?

[ILoveMondeo]

Not so much pot holes, that's crap weather and no maintenance.
Talking about state of the surface, specifically the lumpy bumpy, wibbly wobbly, weird camber, "rolling" surface so many seem to have.
Even a newly resurfaced bit of A road or motorway feels a little like a rollercoaster!
Seen plenty of mention about it recently in review of some new sports cars about "how they cope with uk bumpy roads" and tramlining issues.
Why isn't a new bit of road at least flat, with perhaps enough camber to allow rain to flow off to ditches?
No money? Done of the cheap? Crap materials?

[kambites]

Try driving almost anywhere else in the world, and you'll realise that our roads are bloody good in comparison.

I doubt there are more than twenty countries in the world which average better road surfaces than the UK.

[sunnydude959]

kambites said:

Try driving almost anywhere else in the world, and you'll realise that our roads are bloody good in comparison.

+1. Try driving through the USA, and enter a bridge… You will actually feel the transition from land to bridge, I nearly spilled my drink!

[Vladimir]

The roads are bad down here (Cornwall) and there's a veeeery dodgy/cosy relationship between the council and the contractor, Cormac. It appears to operate like a normal contractor yet they get ALL Cornwall Council's work.

A client of ours needs a public access road building and was told around £80-100k by an architect. Cormac's quote? £300k. I've also had a mate check their work (he's ex Hanson's and knows his civils stuff well) and said it's dismal. Pothole repairs last literally a week and aren't finished properly; so half the problem is an incumbent, cr4p contractor in the Council's pocket using dodgy work.

I went for a proper blast in the M135i yesterday and narrowly missed at least half a dozen rim bending holes on a major A road.

There's a council somewhere that repairs all potholes within an hour thanks to using a fantastic contractor -can't remember who or where though!

[ILoveMondeo]

I've driven a bit in Europe but not enough to make any real comparisons.

However the motoring press seem to regularly trot out similar lines about "it's great on Italy's glass smooth roads, how about the uks bumpy country roads"

I definitely agree "our roads are bumpy"

Not been my experience of italy, cobbles and pot holed motorways... Except around Modena, but I think a well known key ring and baseball hat manufacturer may help out there...

[RizzoTheRat]

I've driven or ridden around most of Western Europe, Iceland and South Africa, and I reckon Ireland is about the only place I've been with worse roads than the UK, excluding unmade roads.

[ILoveMondeo]

I should add the reason I'm asking is I've got a bit of a trailing issue with the tuscan and If there's a weird lump, or odd camber or a "roll" in the road, I know all about it!

And recent comments I've seen in many 4c reviews about the way it copes with the uks roads.

Something bigger/heavier would soak it all up in the suspension and fat tyres.

[Lost soul]

kambites said:

Try driving almost anywhere else in the world, and you'll realise that our roads are bloody good in comparison.

I doubt there are more than twenty countries in the world which average better road surfaces than the UK.

Denmark
Sweden
Norway
Germany
Holland
Belgium
France

want me to go on ?

[kambites]

Lost soul said:

kambites said:

Try driving almost anywhere else in the world, and you'll realise that our roads are bloody good in comparison.

I doubt there are more than twenty countries in the world which average better road surfaces than the UK.

Denmark
Sweden
Norway
Germany
Holland
Belgium
France

want me to go on ?

Yes please. You're some way off 20.

[sunnydude959]

I think another question would be "how good is good enough?". It goes without saying that theres a correlation between road surface quality and money spent on roads. Seeing as we are basically in huge debt as a country, theres no point making it "glass smooth". Of course, its no good having big craters in the road either, but there must be a happy medium - Something which I personally think, from my experience of the roads around where I live (Coventry/Warwickshire), the UK have got right. I think filling potholes is more cost effective than resurfacing the entire road (unless there are enough potholes to justify doing so). Not so long ago, I received a labour council leaflet saying that they'll "Resurface roads instead of fill up potholes" - Typical labour, spend spend spend spend spend without thinking.

[kambites]

It's not just a question of total spending though - it's also a question of long-termism vs short-termism and, to an extent, legislation of private companies who are allowed to dig them up.

[Lost soul]

kambites said:

Lost soul said:

kambites said:

Try driving almost anywhere else in the world, and you'll realise that our roads are bloody good in comparison.

I doubt there are more than twenty countries in the world which average better road surfaces than the UK.

Denmark
Sweden
Norway
Germany
Holland
Belgium
France

want me to go on ?

Yes please. You're some way off 20.

Austria
Poland
Luxembourg
Spain
Italy
USA
Canada
South Africa
Greece
Israel

give up , I can only speak from experience of these countries , I am sure there are plenty more that are better then the UK's roads as they are abysmal

[Dave Hedgehog]

we are plagued with pot holes that have been ignored for about 5 months

a few small holes that could have been fixed quickly and cheaply have turned into the need to redo miles of road at a cost of £100ks

idiot short sighted councilors wasting a fortune ...

[kambites]

Lost soul said:

Austria
Poland
Luxembourg
Spain
Italy
USA
Canada
South Africa
Greece
Israel

You've driven in very different bits of Poland, Spain, Italy, the USA, Canada and Greece to me then. I've spent a fair amount of time driving in each of them and I'd rate them as all far worse than the UK, if you attempt to compare like for like. I've not driven in the others. I'm not sure I'd agree with France either, once you get off the major roads (most of which you have to pay a toll to use).

[anonymous-user]

kambites said:

Try driving almost anywhere else in the world, and you'll realise that our roads are bloody good in comparison.

I doubt there are more than twenty countries in the world which average better road surfaces than the UK.

The roads in Togo weren't much worse tbh.

I think our roads now figure in 'some of the worst' rather than 'some of the better' type comparisons.

[Lost soul]

kambites said:

Lost soul said:

Austria
Poland
Luxembourg
Spain
Italy
USA
Canada
South Africa
Greece
Israel

You've driven in very different bits of Poland, Spain, Italy, the USA, Canada and Greece to me then. I've spent a fair amount of time driving in each of them and I'd rate them as all far worse than the UK, if you attempt to compare like for like. I've not driven in the others.

Are you serious !!! ok is this the all afternoon argument or just the 1/2 hour argument

[kambites]

Lost soul said:

Are you serious !!! ok is this the all afternoon argument or just the 1/2 hour argument

Yes, entirely serious. I've spent quite a lot of time driving around Eastern and Southern Europe and North America and very rarely encountered better roads that I drive on in Hampshire.

[kambites]

Maybe the issue here is that it varies enormously between different areas of the UK?

[Lost soul]

kambites said:

Yes, entirely serious. I've spent quite a lot of time driving around Eastern and Southern Europe and North America and very rarely encountered better roads that I drive on in Hampshire.

I will leave you to it then , you obviously know much more than I do

[Leins]

RizzoTheRat said:

I've driven or ridden around most of Western Europe, Iceland and South Africa, and I reckon Ireland is about the only place I've been with worse roads than the UK, excluding unmade roads.

The motorways inbetween most of the main cities are in a pretty good state, some of the back roads are a bit ropey, but it's the more urban roads here which are the worst. Absolutely shocking, with pot-holes doing the job normally associated with speedramps!