In this country, you know that summer is here not when the sun comes out (which of course it doesn’t, much), but instead when you see tribes of road “workers” covering our roads with loose chippings. This method of road re-surfacing really does smack of “we can’t be arsed to do the job properly”. It doesn’t seem to have occurred to the local councils that covering the roads with loose chippings is for motorcyclists what driving on ice is for car drivers. Would the council liberally spray the roads with water in the middle of winter?
Last week, I was riding home from work along the old A303 from South Petherton to Ilminster, only to round a bend and come face to face with a freshly gravelled road. I stopped and turned around to take another route home. I’m not going to ride, or drive my car on this crap. Apart from the dangers to a motorcycle, I object to the damage caused by the flying chips. Even if you drive slowly and carefully, you can pretty much guarantee some twat coming the other way in a truck will not be, and I have no desire to see any of my vehicles pebble dashed by inconsiderate pricks. Even worse is the tar that sprays all over your tyres and paintwork and is next to impossible to clean off.
Only the British could come up with such a slap dash method of re-surfacing a road. In Europe, the motorist is faced with great ribbons of immaculate smooth tarmac leading them to their destination. Here, a bunch of lazy arse road work teams splodge a load of tar all over the place, lob some gravel on top, and give it a quick run over with the roller. This once over is never enough to properly finish the surface of the road, which is what is supposed to happen. Then the road should be swept clear of hazardous loose chippings. But no, instead they just can’t be bothered, leaving the rolling in to the passing vehicles and the sweeping to the elements.
I cannot believe in modern Britain that councils can get away with this, particularly given the outrageous amounts of tax we are forced to pay them.
If you have been forced to drive over such a surface, I strongly suggest that you immediately get out of your car and check for damage. Photograph the chips in your paintwork and then get a quote for repair. Send it to your local council who have third party insurance for such claims and therefore should foot the bill for the repairs. If we all start doing this, then perhaps they will see sense and lay some proper tarmac, or at least do the job properly.
Loose chippings not only damage paintwork, they damage tyres. And once stuck in your tyres, they will then damage your driveway or garage floor too. If you get chippings stuck in your motorcycle tyres they can result in a potentially fatal loss of grip. How come the Health & Safety risk assessment malarkey does not apply to road re-surfacing?
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