The Importance Of Preventative Maintenance In Managing The Effects Of Flooding
BituChem |
Already in 2021, we have seen floods hit parts of England and Wales. In January of this year, Storm Christoph brought heavy rains which caused river levels to rise in North Wales and the North West of England, the financial and human effects of which are still being felt now.
In recent years, the UK has been no stranger to floods brought on by heavy rain and rising rivers. Not only are these vicious weather events devastating for businesses and homeowners alike, but they also wreak havoc on the country’s transport infrastructure too!
The Impact Of Flooding On Roads
While extensive early warning, planning and flood procedures help communities protect their homes and businesses as far as possible and evacuate threatened areas in good times, roads are an entirely different story. In periods of heavy rain, UK roads bear the brunt of the elements. In a matter of hours, asphalt road surfacing can be severely affected, while sustained saturation of the road surface can be even more damaging.
The main impact of sustained rainfall and flooding is a deterioration of the surface layer. Water doesn’t just gather on the surface, it seeps into the asphalt. When this happens during a flood, the intense level of saturation can weaken the bond between the bitumen and the aggregate which weakens the surface and makes it even more susceptible to damage such as cracks, deformations and potholes.
As we all know, effective and safe transport systems are vital to our infrastructure. The damage caused by flooding is not just unsafe, it’s expensive too. What’s more, the type of work needed to put this kind of damage right can be time consuming and disruptive to road users.
Preventative Maintenance With Flooding In Mind
Preventative maintenance is one way in which we can minimise the impact and cost of flooding on our road systems. That is a regular schedule of planned maintenance that ensures roads are in the best condition prior to flooding.
Pothole repair and the application of surface dressing and surface treatments all contribute to a robust roster of preventative maintenance. This is not only a much safer way to approach the problems that flooding poses to our roads but also cost-effective and time-saving.
How Can We Help?
Here at BituChem, we understand the challenges that local authorities, councils and contractors face when it comes to road maintenance and repairs. Our aim is to address these and come up with the most effective innovative solutions possible, to ensure that roads remain safe, effective and fit for purpose.
Currently, we offer a wide range of highway preservation products which can all be used in the course of road maintenance and repair. These include highway preservatives, micro asphalt surface treatments, surface dressing emulsions, and pothole repair technology. Not only are these solutions designed to be cost-effective, but they’re also designed to be deployed quickly with minimal disruption to road users.
To find out more about how we can help with preventative and reactive road repairs and maintenance, please contact us. We are an established road surfacing specialist with a long-standing reputation for our trustworthy conduct and our willingness to collaborate with customers to devise the best solutions for the global highways construction and road surfacing industry.
