Road Resurfacing Kent

There are numerous reasons behind road damage. Dense traffic, unfavorable weather conditions, stagnant water puddles, and oil spills can damage the uppermost asphalt layer of the road. Once asphalt gets affected then it doesn’t take much time to deteriorate the basal layer of the road.  Asphalt also, called bitumen is a black-colored, viscous substance and is procured during the distillation of petroleum.

However, the deterioration of asphalt can be avoided, through a technique called road resurfacing. Road resurfacing is a means of maintaining the road by depositing a layer of asphalt on the preexisting surface of the road. In this technique, the bitumen layer is introduced without removing or replacing the already existing base material. This technique is usually preferred when only the topmost layer has deformed entirely while the inner layers remain intact.

The main objective of road resurfacing is to increase the lifespan or durability of the road, pavements, etc.  Therefore the most effective methods that are often employed to resurface roads are as follows:

Overcoating:

Overlaying or over-coating is one of the quickest and cost-effective techniques to maintain roadways. In this method, a new layer of asphalt is spread, over the damaged road, mainly on the areas consisting of potholes. The entire process takes a minimum amount of time and requires a day for the material to settle.

Through this method, the structural stability and life expectancy of the road are restored for a maximum of up to fifteen to eighteen years. Its application is more common in regions with heavy traffic where complete restoration from the base is not possible.

Milling and Sealing:

Excessive oil spills from vehicles or large puddles of still water can make the asphalt layer of the road crumbly. It is one of the chief reasons behind the formation of cracks on the road surface. Such kinds of roads are resurfaced by first removing the brittle asphalt by crushing or grinding. This step is then followed by pouring fresh asphalt onto the damaged areas and allowing it to cool. Although asphalt cools down in a matter of minutes, its filling may take few hours to complete.

Apart from roads, pavements, driveways, parking lots can also be restored and maintained through this technique. Road resurfacing is the most cost-effective and immediate way of enhancing the strength and maintaining the structure of roads. Due to such reasons, developing regions with heavy traffic volumes opt for this method since blocking roadways to construct them from scratch can be time-consuming.

Apart from the methods mentioned above, there are several other ways of road resurfacing for instance micro-surfacing, asphalt rubber cape seal, etc. Once the entire process has been completed, a scheme to upkeep roadways, driveways, or parking areas is, plotted. Road surface markings and filling of potholes are also included in this scheme which may get scraped off due to fast-moving automobiles.

Whether it is covering the potholes, increasing the lifespan of roadways, or maintaining road markings, road resurfacing is the most profitable technique of all.