Does road really need repaving?
COULD someone from Environment & Infrastructure please explain as to why the road leading to the Aquarium at La Vallette is being completely re-surfaced from one end to the other when, as a daily user, I can see nothing wrong with the current surface other than two very small potholes just at the entrance to the ‘cutting’ half way along? Outside the Octopus restaurant a new disabled bay had only recently been painted on the road surface, and that together with other signs and lines, including the 15mph circle on the road surface as you enter the road, will all have to be redone. I am also amazed at the amount of vehicles and men required to undertake the work. Please, whoever gives the response to this letter, could they give us some idea as to the cost of this work?
JANINE LE SAUVAGE
Meadow View,
Les Hubits de Bas,
St Martin’s.
A spokesman from Traffic and Highway Services responds: Thank you very much for the opportunity to respond to this points raised in this letter. Traffic and Highway Services was surprised that the reader does not believe the road is in need of treatment but is happy to explain why it is being resurfaced. The two photos provided give a clearest indication of why the road and pavement are being resurfaced. The road is around 27 years old and sections of the pavement are considerably older than this. These surfaces are at the end of their service life, with ‘stripping’ occurring. This is when the bituminous material binding the stone together stone breaks down and allows moisture in. This has seen large gaps appear between the stone in places, so much so that you can fit one and two pence coins in the large gaps in some places.
One of the challenges Traffic and Highway Services faces is that people do not see a road as needing resurfacing until they see holes in it. As the readers will know, it is best to replace a roof just before it is full of holes, not when it is letting water into the house. In the same way, Traffic and Highway Services is proactively trying to invest in its infrastructure, the roads, before they deteriorate to a state where the road is in a very poor state, meaning much more work is needed at greater cost. Some potholes have already started to appear and further deterioration of the road is expected over the winter. It is best to address these issues now ahead of the poor weather rather than in the spring or summer when more people will be using the area and more inconvenienced.
The cost of this project averages at under £38 per square metre to repair and resurface the road, which, if compared to the price of tiles or carpet, proves to be very good value. The maximum amount of men involved in this project is seven, which is not large for a resurfacing project, and often there are only four men on site when less are needed. A lot of hard work by the parish and community has gone into enhancing the Vallette area and it is only right that Traffic and Highways supports this by improving this old road. The works also include extensions to the pavements to provide a more continuous route through for pedestrians.
It is hoped this shows that the road is in need of resurfacing and is being done at reasonable cost.