Road surface worries

A new road surface being used on motorways and trunk roads across the UK has serious safety concerns according to an investigation by the BBC.

The material, stone mastic asphalt (SMA), has been approved by the Highways Agency despite the fact the surface has been banned in Ireland on some roads because of fears about poor grip.

Police crash investigators are said to be worried that in certain conditions, some roads do not offer much grip for up to two years until they have bedded in. And the BBC has reported the same concerns have been raised in Germany, where SMA was pioneered, and Holland. The worry is that a lack of grip occurs on new, dry roads.

The same BBC investigation also reveals that one in five miles of existing main road are now potentially dangerous due to low skid resistance, according to the government’s own most recent maintenance survey.

To read the full BBC report, click here.

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