Work starts on £2m highways scheme to safeguard roads

East Riding Council has begun a major programme of works that will improve the resilience of highways.

Work began in Holderness and will this week see maintenance teams working nights on the A1079 at Arras Hill, near Market Weighton, and the A1035 Tickton Bypass, to minimise disruption.

Surface dressing forms part of the council’s proactive approach to the maintenance of the 3,500km of highway network in the East Riding and takes place every year on both urban and rural roads.

It has four main purposes: to provide texture and skid resistance to an existing surface, to seal a road against water, to stop disintegration and to provide a uniform appearance for a patched road.

Coun Chris Matthews, portfolio holder for infrastructure, highways and emergency planning, said: “Ensuring the roads and infrastructure of the East Riding as a whole is in the best possible order long-term is a top priority for the council.

“Surface dressing provides a value for money and proactive approach by sealing roads, reducing reactive repair works and protecting the road network from winter ingress and frost damage.

“Surface dressing is in line with national initiatives for undertaking preventative works to reduce overall road maintenance costs.

“The quality of the surface dressing is a testament to partnership working by streetscene services with specialist sub-contractors who supply the bitumen spray-bar tankers, those in traffic management, the council’s chipping spreaders and the aftercare crews.”

The council said 10mph restrictions would initially be in place on newly treated surfaces, which are swept after 24 hours and again after four to six weeks. Excess chippings are recycled for future use.

Road markings are usually reapplied within seven days after loose chippings have gone, depending on the weather being fine.