As we continue our series on Road Maintenance, we’ve discussed the 4 critical functions of road maintenance and 4 categories of maintaining Nigerian roads in previous articles.
In this article, we want to discuss about one of the critical functions of road maintenance: surface maintenance.
What is Surface Maintenance?
Sun, heat and vehicle loads can break down roads, but the biggest enemy of a road is water. When water gets underneath the pavement, the road becomes weaker and, as vehicles uses the road, the weakened parts of the pavement start pumping up and down and a pothole is born. To protect the roads and prevent surface damage, surface maintenance is mandatory.
Surface maintenance is the maintenance of the road surface by routinely patching or sealing cracks and damaged areas to ensure proper drainage and traffic usage. That is, it consist of maintaining the road surface by re-establishing crown and proper cross-slope and incorporating loose stones back into the road surface to prevent surface damages.
Why Road Surface Maintenance is Vital in Maintaining Nigerian Roads
You make use of the country’s roads on a daily basis because they enable you get from one place to another. It is however vitally important that the Nigerian road surfaces are maintained on a regular basis, for the following reasons.
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To provide proper drainage
The first reason road surface maintenance is important to ensure that there is a proper drainage system among Nigerian roads. And the primary purpose of a road drainage system is to remove the water from the road and its surroundings.
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To improve road performance
Another importance of road surface maintenance is to improve the performance of Nigerian roads. Most Nigerian roads are not performing well due to surface damages preventing. The consistent implementation of surface maintenance on Nigerian roads, can not only keep the road surface smooth, it will help improve the performance of the usage of the road.
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To reduce risks of accident
Accidents do happen and sometimes it difficult to prevent them, however the risk of accidents caused by poor road surfacing can be limited through regular surface maintenance. The relatively simple task of repairing potholes will go a long way to prevent accidents on Nigerian roads.
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To maintain travel routes
Everyone relies on the road network to get them to their planned destination. If road surfaces are not maintained, the use of such road for a journey will be a bumpy drive; because, the journey would not be able to be completed with such ease. Therefore, a regular surface maintenance will not only maintain the roads, it will also ensure that the journey is completed with ease.
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To lower vehicle maintenance cost
Lowering the cost of maintaining your vehicle is a good reason for road surface maintenance. This is because, with a poorly maintained road surface comes a greater risk of damage to your vehicle. And the damage can be anything from a minor issue to a major one. Any form of damage is obviously going to be unwanted and will result in you spending money to repair your car. That’s why Nigerian cars don’t last as long as their foreign versions. Our roads are major contributors of vehicle damages in Nigeria!
Conclusion
Road surface maintenance is crucial. No matter how well maintenance is done, regular surface maintenance prevents surface damage. To protect our roads and prevent surface damage from water seepage, patching and sealing of cracks and damaged areas are required. This helps to prolong the life of the road to avoid costly resurfacing or reconstruction.
[…] In a previous article, we talked about the first critical function of road maintenance – surface maintenance and the reasons why regular road surface maintenance is […]