Bromley Council is more than doubling its road resurfacing programme to over £5 m in the coming year and speeding up pothole repairs by trialling a new ‘super asphalt’.
Unlike traditional hot asphalt, the new material, Viafix, comes in a sack and is highly viscose and can be laid by one operative in any weather condition, even in the rain and where puddles have formed, eliminating delays caused by temperature or moisture. The process which involves cutting a regular patch round the hole, removing the loose material, applying a glue and then pouring the Viafix into the hole and then rolling it. A process which will take, on average, 20 minutes, will cut the time the road is closed and increase the number of potholes which can be repaired each day. Four teams are being employed. Each repair is guaranteed for two years.
The new asphalt unlike the traditional material which has to be delivered ‘hot’, from a distant asphalt plant, crews will save significant time on travel and no longer face the risk of hot material cooling and becoming unusable
Councillor Nicholas Bennett, Executive Councillor for Transport, Highways & Road Safety said, “I am very conscious as a resident and motorist that the torrential rain this winter has created hundreds of new potholes and worsened others creating a backlog of repairs. This is unacceptable. The best way to prevent them is resurfacing the road. As London’s largest borough with more than 547 miles of road, equal to the distance to Zurich in Switzerland, we are limited how many roads can be done each year but we are doubling the money spent to over £5 m. using a new grant and modernising the way we tackle potholes. Over the next four years we are planning to spend £16m on improving our roads, As always we are aware of the need to be as efficient, effective and economic as possible to provide best value for the taxpayer”.
Whilst the Council has a dedicated inspection team, potholes can be reported for repair by visiting www.bromley.gov.uk/report.
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