£2.6m of Road Repairs Start This Month in North Yorkshire

Hundreds of miles of roads across England’s largest county are to be treated as part of an extensive annual programme.

The new North Yorkshire Council says it is delivering an extra £2.6 million worth of surface dressing works as part of its £8 million programme during spring and summer.

Surface dressing is a quick, efficient and cost-effective way of maintaining skid-resistant and waterproof road surfaces, helping to prevent potholes and extending the life of the road by up to ten years.

The council say:

"We spray the existing road surface with a coating of bitumen, then spread stone chippings on top. The chippings are then rolled into the bitumen. Once the bitumen has set, we will sweep the road to remove any loose chippings. This will usually be done after 24 hours, but during hot weather this may take longer.

Traffic is allowed onto the new surface, at a reduced speed, to help to push the chippings into the road. The action of traffic soon begins to embed the chips, forming a stable and hard wearing new surface. We then complete a final sweep after seven days.

It is important to keep to the temporary speed limits of 20mph, and avoid sharp turns. This allow the surface to stabilise, and prevents any damage to your vehicle.

Surface dressing provides added protection to the carriageway surface, as well as enhancing the skid resistance, making it safer to drive on."

North Yorkshire Council’s executive member for highways and transport, Cllr Keane Duncan, said:

“Keeping North Yorkshire’s roads safe and in the best possible condition is a top priority for the new council and we’re taking action in our first month.

“This £8 million investment in surface dressing is a key part of our proactive maintenance plan that is vital to maintaining a safe network and preventing potholes arising.

“Maintaining North Yorkshire’s roads is an immense challenge, but despite the impact of winter and inflationary pressures we are making positive progress.

“Careful prioritisation of works, additional investment and close cooperation with our contractors means we will be delivering an extra £2.6 million worth of surface dressing schemes this year, the equivalent of an extra 60 miles.

“This is immensely positive news, but there is still more to do, and we will continue to invest and innovate to improve the road network for residents in all corners of the county.”

In this year’s Spring Budget, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt pledged to increase the fund available to deal with potholes each year to £700 million. North Yorkshire was awarded £6.5 million, making it among the top three councils to benefit from the funding. A review of its programme is under way to bring in new schemes and ensure the money is spent in the most cost-effective way.

The surface dressing programme will begin mid-April in the Scarborough, Hambleton and Selby districts. It is due to run into Ryedale and Richmondshire in May, finishing in the Craven district in early June.

Surface dressing is preventative, for roads which are in relatively good condition. It can last around ten years, roads can be re-dressed up to three times, and is very cost effective. Also, the work is done relatively quickly, minimising the inconvenience for residents and motorists.

Resurfacing is a more extensive structural maintenance treatment which involves digging down and removing the top layer of a worn out road surface, and replacing this with new material. Resurfacing is around five times more expensive than surface dressing - 200 miles of roads can be surface dressed for the cost of resurfacing 40 miles.