Roads slick with water
It seems every time I need to make a longer journey than normal it's raining and in doing so a small observation creeps into view - every new surface is slick with water.
Roads that have been newly laid, areas that have been re-surfaced all of them glisten with surface water. Oh yes the old surfaces have the odd patch which has sunk or was never laid properly in the first place, but on new surfaces this layer of water is consistent.
Perhaps it's an illusion caused by the fact that the old road surfaces appear granular whereas the new surfaces all seem so smooth, yet the comparative amount of spray that seems to be thrown up seems to contradict that.
So what gives? Are new surfaces a different construction or is it just me?
2 comments:
You may have noticed that when the authoities resurface a road they put up red warning signs. This is because the surface water does indeed behave differently for some months and it was only after a series of skidding accidents on newly resurfaced roads was it realised that the authority could be sued if it failed to warn the public. However, I must admit that very little publicity is given by road safety staff to this issue.
I can't say I have noticed. Oh maybe once or twice you get the skid sign but not for very long. On the other hand "New Layout Ahead" signs seem to stay up for years.
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