What is our road made of?

[TOTO]

Have you ever stopped your bike and laid down on the road and looked at it up close?

So close to be able to look into the eyes of an ant?

Well if you haven't, here is what you will see...

A surface made out of stones, stuck together with a black substance under the name of tar. Under the scorching summer sun the tar boiling and bubbling over, and in this process swallowing the stones which originally had been laid on the top to provide grip. This leaves YOU, the rider, riding and relying on a substance with the consistency of a marshmallow sent from hell. It is the silent killer lurking on our place of fun, entertainment, and relaxation. It will take any opportunity it can to make us sorry we ever swung a leg over our bike that day.

Unfortunately there is no sign of this silent killer going away soon, because our roads are being built with cost saving as a first priority and safety for road users second. As you are reading this, the men in orange are laying tar, stones and spit and making what we in New Zealand call "Road".

[yungatart]

Disgusting, eh/
We were headed around the lake the other day. A road that we have regularly driven/ridden over for the last few years was being resealed (Don't ask me why, because it was in pretty good condition). They had resealed two areas and were in the process of doing a third. There were whole strips of the first one they had done, where the chip had already gone.....after resealing it was in worse condition than before.

[ukusa]

Good post, you're right. cheap & nasty is what it is.

another downside is the crap (ie. super sticky tar covered stones) that adheres to all parts motorbike when you travel through it, even at slow "roadworks" pace. This shit is bloody time consuming & difficult to get off.
Trucks seem to chew it up, gather it in their tread & spit it back at you at high speed too.

[Swoop]

Typical kiwi mentality of "doing the job as cheap as possible".
Examples:
Roads.
Houses.
Infrastructure.
Etc.
Etc.

[Elysium]

Trucks seem to chew it up, gather it in their tread & spit it back at you at high speed too.
It'll get worse when bigger trucks hit our roads.

[Hopeful Bastard]

Hey.. i have some of that funny looking shit in pics 1, 2 and 5 on my road too now.. Damn you for mentioning this!

Again.. There was nothing wrong with this piece of road.. I can think of other major places that need doing!

[Elysium]

I think every year Transit or who looks after our roads have to spend their allocated budget by the end of the year or something like that. So that might explain why they dig up good roads. That sound right?

[ukusa]

I think every year Transit or who looks after our roads have to spend their allocated budget by the end of the year or something like that. So that might explain why they dig up good roads. That sound right?

probably is. Although their favourite money waster at the moment seems to be those stupid rumble edge lines

[Qkchk]

To make it even better, there has been a few 'trails' of special roading chip. This includes recycled glass and tyres.

[crazyhorse]

Have you ever stopped your bike and laid down on the road and looked at it up close?

So close to be able to look into the eyes of an ant?

Well if you haven't, here is what you will see...

A surface made out of stones, stuck together with a black substance under the name of tar. Under the scorching summer sun the tar boiling and bubbling over, and in this process swallowing the stones which originally had been laid on the top to provide grip. This leaves YOU, the rider, riding and relying on a substance with the consistency of a marshmallow sent from hell. It is the silent killer lurking on our place of fun, entertainment, and relaxation. It will take any opportunity it can to make us sorry we ever swung a leg over our bike that day.

Unfortunately there is no sign of this silent killer going away soon, because our roads are being built with cost saving as a first priority and safety for road users second. As you are reading this, the men in orange are laying tar, stones and spit and making what we in New Zealand call "Road".

Nice photos you have taken - very discriptive with the lense. Certainly does make you wonder though doesn't it

[sleemanj]

Double edged sword if you ask me, yes it's a total pain on a bike, no matter what, even in a car it's messy.... then, dunno about you, but when I think of summers in that dim distant past, I always think of country roads to a river or something on scorching hot days with the aroma of melting tar and grass seed in the air.

Ahhh, them were the days.

[John_H]

There is tar seal, which is the smooth kind and tar chip, which is the exposed stone kind. Both different surfaces laid down for different reasons.

[R6_kid]

I wonder if it is possibly to dye the tar so that it doesn't heat up as much in the sun?

[OutForADuck]

I thought they were made of potholes!!! Roading 101... get a whole lot of holes and join them using some Tar and chip!!

Toto... no one has asked... but why did you end up looking down the road from a nats sneaker point of view.. anything you need to tell us???

[p.dath]

Toto how do you think they should build the road differently? Should they be using a different tar mix or something?

[ukusa]

To make it even better, there has been a few 'trails' of special roading chip. This includes recycled glass and tyres.

more cheap road surfaces!

[Mikkel]

Typical kiwi mentality of "doing the job as cheap as possible".
Examples:
Roads.
Houses.
Infrastructure.
Etc.
Etc.

Yep, short-sightedness...

The argument "We haven't got enough people to afford to do it properly..." is wrong.

The truth is "We can not afford not to do it properly..."

[ukusa]

Toto how do you think they should build the road differently? Should they be using a different tar mix or something?

What do Aussie use? Thay have hotter road surfaces & I can't recall seeing them melt.

I've never ridden a bike over there before, so can't say what they're like to ride on (only driven cars over there).

[Scotty595]

From what I recall the roads in aussie seemed to be a hell of a lot better than here

[ManDownUnder]

Polarised glasses are really handy when riding for the simple reason that anything oily... LOOKS oily. That includes tar (especially soft tar) , diesel spills... etc

[TOTO]

I thought they were made of potholes!!! Roading 101... get a whole lot of holes and join them using some Tar and chip!!

Toto... no one has asked... but why did you end up looking down the road from a nats sneaker point of view.. anything you need to tell us???

We were waiting for the construction guy to turn the GO sign.

[EJK]

Oh hey it's always better than horse poo sealed road back in the 1800's :lol:

[R6_kid]

Yep, short-sightedness...

The argument "We haven't got enough people to afford to do it properly..." is wrong.

The truth is "We can not afford not to do it properly..."

You mean, we spent too much money on buying four times more cones than we need, now we have no money to actually build the road to a good standard. But we're safe as while we're working.

[george formby]

Yet another challenge we face, the cooncil have started using a brown scoria chip up here & for some reason you cannot see the gravel, you hear it first. Be interesting to see if it suffers from tar melt the same as granite chip.
On a European tour a couple of years ago I travelled through the Benelux countrys in pi**ing rain. The motorway repairs are just tar, no chip so you end up being forced to ride on something as grippy as ice. Every time you hit the over banding, the back wheel lights up at 120kmh while you are riding blind & avoiding czech artics. It's not too bad here..

[Swoop]

... get a whole lot of holes and join them...
I am able to positively confirm, that whenever a pothole is filled in on a NZ road, that hole has to go and live on the Turkish roads.:yes:

[Goblin]

probably is. Although their favourite money waster at the moment seems to be those stupid rumble edge lines:argh:Hate those rumble lines! Dont mind them on the double yellows but on the fog line is just dangerous. Sometimes the best lines are to the left of the fog line.

[p.dath]

Yet another challenge we face, the cooncil have started using a brown scoria chip up here & for some reason you cannot see the gravel, you hear it first. Be interesting to see if it suffers from tar melt the same as granite chip.

If I recall correctly, it offers more grip. It is quite popular at intersections (improves braking) and on high accident corners as a result.

[Sam I Am]

The reason they chip the road is to seal it from water leaks so water dosen't get in and distroy the road base, it is ment to extent the road life about 10 years...

They just did it to our road in town in auckland and its CRAP....... F'n stones everywere , it was done 3 months ago now the stones with tar are all up our drive and are waling in on the deck and in house, there always stuck in the car tires and the kids always have tar on feet and all our shoes GRRRRR as the stones are all over the pavment too.
The corners are patchy and so is everwere where people brake...
What a wast of money doing it cheaply..

[Mikkel]

Polarised glasses are really handy when riding for the simple reason that anything oily... LOOKS oily. That includes tar (especially soft tar) , diesel spills... etc

Alas, some visors really fuck with polarised sunnies... So unless you like the visual impression of being on an LSD trip combining the two is not ideal.

[Lurch]

Just as well it never gets hot enough to melt tar in the Wellington region. And with this global cooling trend you'll be glad for the nasty chip roads as the concrete ones in Aus are a fucking nightmare in the ice.

[red mermaid]

So what do you suggest they build our roads out of then, and if this is more expensive, are you prepared to pay though higher rates, taxes, and probably registration fees.

NZ has one of the highest costs per km to build roads because of our terrain, bridges, hills, etc.

[ManDownUnder]

So what do you suggest they build our roads out of then, and if this is more expensive, are you prepared to pay though higher rates, taxes, and probably registration fees.

NZ has one of the highest costs per km to build roads because of our terrain, bridges, hills, etc.

Anything safe to ride and drive on seems to be an obvious answer. The chip seal we use is actually pretty good I personally think, with the odd exceptional slippery patch but you're going to get that with most surfaces I would imagine.

[ukusa]

Just as well it never gets hot enough to melt tar in the Wellington region. And with this global cooling trend you'll be glad for the nasty chip roads as the concrete ones in Aus are a fucking nightmare in the ice.

They have ice in Oz?

[MSTRS]

You mean, we spent too much money on buying four times more cones than we need, now we have no money to actually build the road to a good standard. But we're safe as while we're working.

Don't get me started on those bloody cones...dangerous things, they are.
Ever noticed how when a bunch of them line a roadside, that a temporary speed sign (usually 30kph) is in attendance? Most of the time there's nothing there but the cones. Therefore road cones are dangerous...

[MSTRS]

You mean, we spent too much money on buying four times more cones than we need, now we have no money to actually build the road to a good standard. But we're safe as while we're working.

Don't get me started on those bloody cones...dangerous things, they are.
Ever noticed how when a bunch of them line a roadside, that a temporary speed sign (usually 30kph) is in attendance? Most of the time there's nothing there but the cones. Therefore road cones are dangerous...

[steve_t]

Don't get me started on those bloody cones...dangerous things, they are.
Ever noticed how when a bunch of them line a roadside, that a temporary speed sign (usually 30kph) is in attendance? Most of the time there's nothing there but the cones. Therefore road cones are dangerous...

Target fixation ;)

[Mudfart]

My job WAS as a man in orange. I picked up hotmix on the back of trucks, then shovelled it off by hand, usually between 12-16 cubic meters a day.
Being an ex-roadworker, and studing roads where I live, the care of work that goes into roads is definately a lot higher in Dauckland.
Perhaps all the non big city quality control civil engineers that are passing jobs as finished need a big kick up the arse.
Notice you aint ever gonna be in the pub, and some guy admit he is a tertiary qualified council engineer?
Maybe its just the whole class division thing that makes uni grads soooo much better than us wage scum. Perhaps their beer tastes sooo much better, and is poured from pure gold, diamond encrusted taps. Oh yeah, did I mention their barmaids are ALWAYS virgins? After all, wage slaves are expendible, a dime a dozen, aren't we? OF COURSE WE ARE, TARD.

[Mudfart]

Don't get me started on those bloody cones...dangerous things, they are.
Ever noticed how when a bunch of them line a roadside, that a temporary speed sign (usually 30kph) is in attendance? Most of the time there's nothing there but the cones. Therefore road cones are dangerous...

As was mentioned on tv some months ago, young drunk people, (usually uni students), steal all manner of road signage warning us of dangers ahead, and are probably responsible for killing quite a few people. The number of times my bosses used to get called up at 2 AM, just to straighten cones that someone had vandalised on our worksites... But hey, like I said in the post above, don't expect better from your betters. If you make a wage, you don't count for nothing. Its the same situation in places like Dunedin. The fire crews are busy extinguishing couches that the students are having their memorable moments made, meanwhile there is a family with babies burning to death somewhere else, not being attended. And these responsible young adults, are going to be your boss, your judge, physician, polititian etc.... We can't blame them though, they need to blow off steam, what with all the pressure of so many parties, and trying to get money to drink.

[p.dath]

I guess you need to consider there are many road users, from small 50cc mopeds, to 40T trucks.

There are also competing needs. Grip, road noise, tyre wear, durability.

Its probably difficult to find a road surface good for everything. So they probably aim to satisfy as many people as they can.

On the whole, I would have to save I'm happy with the standard of seal around Auckland.

[Pixie]

Disgusting, eh/
We were headed around the lake the other day. A road that we have regularly driven/ridden over for the last few years was being resealed (Don't ask me why, because it was in pretty good condition). They had resealed two areas and were in the process of doing a third. There were whole strips of the first one they had done, where the chip had already gone.....after resealing it was in worse condition than before.

The section of road you refer to was obviously too safe so they had to do something to fuck it up

[Pixie]

I guess you need to consider there are many road users, from small 50cc mopeds, to 40T trucks.

There are also competing needs. Grip, road noise, tyre wear, durability.

Its probably difficult to find a road surface good for everything. So they probably aim to satisfy as many people as they can.

On the whole, I would have to save I'm happy with the standard of seal around Auckland.

Well you are easily pleased.
I wonder if the school teacher whose car slid off the road on tar flushing in Henderson,resulting in her death or the guy,riding in front of me, on the VFR who fell off while gently attempting to pass a car on a straight section of road with tar flushing or no doubt many others would agree with you.
Silly question of course,in the case of the teacher,SHE'S DEAD.

Tar flushing occurs because the roading authorities specify cheaper low melting point bitumen to SAVE MONEY.
Apparently the roads in Australia,Saudi Arabia and other hot countries don't melt.

It's the roading equivalent of leaky house syndrome.
Typical NZ "what they don't know won't hurt us and anyway they can't sue us in this wonderful country".

[MSTRS]

I guess you need to consider there are many road users, from small 50cc mopeds, to 40T trucks.

There are also competing needs. Grip, road noise, tyre wear, durability.

Its probably difficult to find a road surface good for everything. So they probably aim to satisfy as many people as they can.

On the whole, I would have to save I'm happy with the standard of seal around Auckland.

Bullshit. Build a road capable of withstanding longterm 50 tonne trucks, and it will be good for every other road user too.

[p.dath]

Bullshit. Build a road capable of withstanding longterm 50 tonne trucks, and it will be good for every other road user too.

Does such a surface also offer reasonable tyre wear, and is not to loud for car users (being the highest number of public road users)?

I might do some Googling later about road surfaces. Do you know much about the choices available?

[MSTRS]

Does such a surface also offer reasonable tyre wear, and is not to loud for car users (being the highest number of public road users)?

I might do some Googling later about road surfaces. Do you know much about the choices available?

No, I don't know 'much' about what is available. Some materials are, no doubt, better than others...but that' s not what I was meaning. Necessarily.
If a road is built sufficiently well, that the roadbed resists being compacted into wheel tracks, the surface being sufficiently robust that it doesn't breakup or loose chip from the bonding agent, etc...in other words, if years of coping with 50 tonne trucks doesn't cause the road to 'fail', then by extension, it must be a good road for all.
Let's face it, we'd like 'them' to build roads that are great for bikes...but heavy vehicles would destroy those roads quick smart. Look what happens to the asphalt on many roundabouts...lovely surface to ride/drive on...but give it a year or two, and look at how it 'creeps' into humps and hollows. That's trucks doing that.
Stands to reason that you build to withstand the worst factors. Pity 'they' don't seem to get that.

[Mudfart]

Ok, this is how the system works.
Auckland council civil engineers are given the task of building some infrastructure. The actual construction (including roads) comes under contract and the contract goes up for tender.
The big fish, (fulton hogan, works infrastructure etc..) make applications with the dollar figure they think they can complete the contract in.
WHOEVER APPLIES WITH THE LOWEST FIGURE, GETS THE JOB.
With having progress deadlines and penalties etc... the job is done at the lowest cost.
There you go, there's your cheap roads, that kill. Although the final inspection does require a passable standard.
There have been so many examples of people dying its just ridiculus, a car sliding out round a slow bend because car no warrant, because bald tyres, young drivers didnt care. That accident killed 1 mother and 2 children under 10y.o. The culprits all survived.
When people ignore road signs that offer smart advice, or ignore that your vehicle REALLY NEEDS TO BE OF WARRANTABLE STANDARD, or drive un der drugs or alcohol, or simply SPEED, they kill, and or die themselves.
I guess when you drive, be patient, calm down and go with the flow and for fuks sake, read the road signs and be observant to conditions etc..
The great thing about my bike, is when noone is around or looking I can give the engine a squirt, and have some fun. And if, IF I come off it, HOPEFULLY the only person hurt would be myself.

[Ixion]

I guess you need to consider there are many road users, from small 50cc mopeds, to 40T trucks.

There are also competing needs. Grip, road noise, tyre wear, durability.

Its probably difficult to find a road surface good for everything. So they probably aim to satisfy as many people as they can.

On the whole, I would have to save I'm happy with the standard of seal around Auckland.

No, it's not hard. In fact , some roads already have such a surface. Buried UNDER the tar seal! Concrete. We used to build roads out of it.

It doesn't melt. Ever. It has consistent grip . It is completely resistent to breaking up even with 50 tonne trucks, For like, the better part of a century.

If you live in Auckland, next time they are resurfacing one of the old main highways (Ellerslie Highway, Mt Wellington Highway, Great xxx Rd, Onewa Road, others) take a look. Under six inches or so of tar you will find concrete. The top is usually a mess now, it's been scabbled to provide a grip for the tar. But it's been down there , getting pounded , for 70 or 80 years maybe. And odds are it'll STILL be in good nick.

In the USA, it's what they use for Interstate highways.

Why don't we use. Cos we're cheap. And only interested in the short term cost.

[p.dath]

I've done some reading about the creation and standard of hot mix. All I can say this is a very complex subject. We may think it is easy to build a better road, but it is very much a science - and the needs can vary from road to road. The "formula" for one area may not suit another

As an example, a twisty road may need a mix with much greater torsional strength, but a side effect may be a much noiser road.

The standard used in NZ seems to be mostly controlled by the NZTA:
http://www.nzta.govt.nz/resources/chipsealing-hot-mix-asphalt/index.html

Many different countries use different systems, different mixes, and have trialled different experiments. Any guess what, lots of other motorists from other countries aren't completely happy with what they have either.

I've updated the Wiki article about NZ roads with some of the info I have found:
http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/wiki/New_Zealand_Roads
Please feel free to augment it with more info.

I can concur with Ixion, in that concrete seems to be well accepted, but it seems few countries used it for the majority of their roading because of the huge expense.


So I guess a lot of it comes down to the roading engineer who decides which hot-mix formula will deliver the best results within the budget available. And I guess sometimes they don't get it right everytime.

[p.dath]

Another interesting snippit on roading:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pavement_%28material%29#Bituminous_Surface_Treatme nt_.28BST.29


As pavement systems primarily fail due to fatigue (in a manner similar to metals), the damage done to pavement increases with the fourth power of the axle load of the vehicles traveling on it. Civil Engineers consider truck axle load, current and projected truck traffic volume, supporting soil properties (can be measured using the CBR) and sub-grade drainage in design. Passenger cars are considered to have no practical effect on a pavement's service life, from a fatigue perspective.

Other pavement failure modes include ageing and surface abrasion. As years go by, the binder in a bituminous wearing course gets stiffer and less flexible. When it gets "old" enough, the surface will start losing aggregates, and macrotexture depth increases dramatically. If no maintenance action is done quickly on the wearing course (seal coating, surface dressing, etc.), potholing will take place. In areas with cold climate, studded tires may be allowed on passenger cars. In Sweden and Finland, studded passenger car tires account for a very large share of pavement rutting.

Several pavement design methods have been developed to determine the thickness and composition of pavement required to carry predicted traffic loads for a given period of time. Pavement design methods are continuously evolving. Among these are the Shell Pavement design method, and the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) 1993 "Guide for Design of Pavement Structures". A new mechanistic-empirical design guide has been under development by NCHRP (Called Superpave Technology) since 1998. A new design guide called Mechanistic Empirical Pavement Design Guide (MEPDG) was developed and is about to be adopted by AASHTO.

According to the AASHO Road Test, heavily loaded trucks can do more than 10,000 times the damage done by a normal passenger car. Tax rates for trucks are higher than those for cars in most countries for this reason, though they are not levied in proportion to the damage done.[9]

The physical properties of a stretch of pavement can be tested using a falling weight deflectometer.

[steve_t]

Another interesting snippit on roading:

...heavily loaded trucks can do more than 10,000 times the damage done by a normal passenger car.

Geez!!:eek5: All the more reason to give bikers a break

[Mikkel]

Ok, this is how the system works.
Auckland council civil engineers are given the task of building some infrastructure. The actual construction (including roads) comes under contract and the contract goes up for tender.
The big fish, (fulton hogan, works infrastructure etc..) make applications with the dollar figure they think they can complete the contract in.
WHOEVER APPLIES WITH THE LOWEST FIGURE, GETS THE JOB.
With having progress deadlines and penalties etc... the job is done at the lowest cost.

Yes, that is how litigation works. However, it is not the fault of the contractors that the specifications are set too low. The problem lies in not being willing to require high enough specifications, mainly because doing so would make the road more expensive.


No, it's not hard. In fact , some roads already have such a surface. Buried UNDER the tar seal! Concrete. We used to build roads out of it.

It doesn't melt. Ever. It has consistent grip . It is completely resistent to breaking up even with 50 tonne trucks, For like, the better part of a century.

I was under the impression that concrete provides poor traction in the wet and that the ride comfort suffers (maybe not compared to rough chipseal...). Or are you talking about an asphalt/concrete mix of some sort? Asphalt is what the roads are made from back home, various kinds too depending upon the specific location - i.e. surface with low roughness in residential areas to reduce road noise and surfaces with higher roughness on secondary roads in the rural area where snow clearing doesn't happen so quickly.

The old autobahn sections made from concrete have rather annoying gaps between the concrete elements, that doesn't make for a comfortable journey.

[Motu]

No, it's not hard. In fact , some roads already have such a surface. Buried UNDER the tar seal! Concrete. We used to build roads out of it.
If you live in Auckland, next time they are resurfacing one of the old main highways (Ellerslie Highway, Mt Wellington Highway, Great xxx Rd, Onewa Road, others) take a look. Under six inches or so of tar you will find concrete.
.

I thought the Yanks did those? Or has my hero worship gone too far? But there are too many concrete roads for them to have done them all....maybe just Panmure/Ellersllie and Mt Wellington Highway....to get stuff to Camp Bunn and Sylvia Park? We should have let them dig the canal,before anyone could say no.Anyway - I never ever saw damage to to concrete roads,they were permanent,like forever.Sure,I spun out of control a few times,cars and bikes....but never on a concrete road.

[jasonzc]

Not trying to insult anyone or offend anyone at all..

I completely agree that the govt are trying to be 'cost effective' ie cheap..

but if another increase in levies or taxes to pay for better road/maintenace etc, then im sure we will be on here again complaining bout that.

Though the govt still could be more efficient with its spenditure

[MSTRS]

but if another increase in levies or taxes to pay for better road/maintenace etc, then im sure we will be on here again complaining bout that.


Since when has our government ever introduced (or raised) a tax for (any specific purpose) and then actually used the money for that purpose?

[yungatart]

Not trying to insult anyone or offend anyone at all..

I completely agree that the govt are trying to be 'cost effective' ie cheap..

but if another increase in levies or taxes to pay for better road/maintenace etc, then im sure we will be on here again complaining bout that.

Though the govt still could be more efficient with its spenditure

It doesn't have to be paid for out by raising taxes. Theoretically, if we built better quality roads, they would need less maintenance dollars being spent on them and would last considerably longer (as in years). They could be funded out of loans and paid back in the future by future taxpayers who would still be deriving the benefit of using a higher cost, better quality, longer lasting road.

[davebullet]

Problem is drivers don't keep their eyes on the road. Therefore make the road out of superglue and naked virgins. (Problem is NZ is running out of the latter).

[Mudfart]

If anyone has a problem with NZ roads, don't EVER EVER go to the UK.

[red mermaid]

I've never been to the UK, but have been to Australia.

I found the interstate roads to be of a much higher quality than the State Highway roads in NZ.

However the rest of the roads seem to be about the same as we get here.

[Hans]

It'll get worse when bigger trucks hit our roads.

Please elaborate? Bigger trucks?

[red mermaid]

The maximum gross weight currently allowed is 44 tonne.

Trials are being held on 50 tonne units, and the Road Transport Forum is lobbying hard to bring them in nationally.

[Hans]

Aaaaah. HEAVIER trucks. Now that I already knew about, being a truckie myself. Hate being a cynical Katman, but I guess I'm in that sort of mood today...

[red mermaid]

And of course there is the illegal ones running round at the 50 tonne and over range.

[p.dath]

The maximum gross weight currently allowed is 44 tonne.

Trials are being held on 50 tonne units, and the Road Transport Forum is lobbying hard to bring them in nationally.

I wish we could balance our nations transport better. Trains and domestic shipping are well suited for moving heavy loads.

The problem is roading is going to cost $x/tonne, and shipping and trains will probably be a little bit higher. However 50T trucks will do a lot more damage to the roading network, and the rest of the road users will be picking up the bigger portion of the bill. Trucks aren't as economical as they first look when you consider the size of potential subsidies.

[red mermaid]

According to the Road Transport Forum (RTF), bigger trucks will not do more damage.

A standard twin tyred axle in NZ is legally allowed to have a maximum weight of 8.2 tonne.

However when those axles are put in a truck and trailer it becomes complicated. The 2 front steering axles are allowed 5.4 tonne each, which is a maximum of 10.8 tonne for the axle group, that leaves about 34 tonne for the other 6 axles = approx 5.7 tonne per axle.

Therefore the RTF maintain that with the roads engineered for an axle load of 8.2 T but most trucks running at 5.7 T there is plenty of room for an increase in truck weights.

An associated complication with this is that maximum lengths are likely to increase from 20 metres to 22 metres.

[The Pastor]

A surface made out of stones, stuck together with a black substance under the name of tar. the men in orange are laying tar

no tar on our roads. try bitch-a-man

[Bald Eagle]

According to the Road Transport Forum (RTF), bigger trucks will not do more damage.


An associated complication with this is that maximum lengths are likely to increase from 20 metres to 22 metres.

Does that mean the potholes will get further apart

[slofox]

Have you ever stopped your bike and laid down on the road and looked at it up close?.

Last time I laid down on the road I got run over by a semi-trailer...which explains a lot...

[TOTO]

Last time I laid down on the road I got run over by a semi-trailer...which explains a lot...

Did you look at the road tho ?

[SPman]

As was mentioned on tv some months ago, young drunk people, (usually uni students), steal all manner of road signage warning us of dangers ahead, and are probably responsible for killing quite a few people. .
Jeez, when I was a young, drunk uni student, we used to steal manhole covers. Wake up at midday after a party...what the fucks that manhole cover doing in the lounge....Now that takes real dedication to the creation of chaos! God knows what we were thinking...ingesting... at the time...........

However the rest of the roads seem to be about the same as we get here. - except they don't melt in prolonged 40+ temps.......

[slofox]

Did you look at the road tho ?

Yep. It was black.

[slofox]

I reckon the roads round the Waikato are made of cow shit - I sure see plenty of it out there...

[Blackshear]

I like hotmix a shitload better.
Worked with it and worked with the tar&heavymetal bullshit before, hotmix takes a bit more manpower, but the result is infinitely better.
It's that super-smooth, no-chunk no-gunk surface.