Skip to main content

Crack infill system ideal reinstatement solution

Overnight repair work on a major English motorway has avoided the major traffic disruption and significantly increased road surfacing costs that would have occurred if left untreated.
February 17, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
Overnight repair work on a major English motorway has avoided the major traffic disruption and significantly increased road surfacing costs that would have occurred if left untreated.

The problem affecting a large stretch of the M42 close to Birmingham Airport and the nearby NEC Arena in the Midlands region was completed using highways maintenance products from 2314 Stirling Lloyd. It concerned fretted joints in the wheel tract to the road surface.

Faced with the prospect of completely removing the road surface if left untreated, Amey Area 9 (sole provider to the 2309 Highways Agency of management services and maintenance of the motorway network throughout the Midlands) quickly set out to find an effective and durable repair method.

Its search concluded that Stirling Lloyd's HAPAS [Highways Authorities Product Approval Scheme]-approved Safetrack Crack Infill system "was the ideal reinstatement solution." Based on an advanced, fast-curing reactive resin, this high-performance road maintenance system is designed to arrest further decay of the road surface by filling cracks or fretted joints, supporting the edges of the asphalt while preventing water penetration.

Given the stretch of motorway affected and the heavy traffic experienced along this route, Amey Area 9 understandably wanted to test the system on an initial 100m section of the road over a six-week period before committing to the full works. The Safetrack Crack Infill system proved highly successful, both in application and performance, so was selected to complete the remainder of the repair, approximately 17,000m.

To minimise disruption to motorists the works were carried out over a series of night-time closures between 11pm and 4am. Within this five-hour window, specialist contractor, Line Markings, had to set out the traffic management, prepare the crack, apply the Safetrack Crack Infill and remove the traffic control.

Despite the tight time constraint the system's simple but speedy application technique and its fast cure enabled the treatment of approximately 1,000m of motorway per night shift.

Line Markings was able to complete the works in under three weeks, one week ahead of schedule. According to Stirling Lloyd, so impressed was Amey Area 9 with the performance and speed of Safetrack's application that the contractor was asked to return a few weeks later and complete the reinstatement of a further 3,600m of the motorway.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Work zone safety solution on busy world highways
    December 3, 2013
    Globally renowned highway work zone safety solution manufacturers have been providing some of their latest systems to protect roadworkers and motorists on high volume traffic highways. Guy Woodford reports Versilis has provided one of its state-of-the-art work zone safety solutions during the rehabilitation of North America’s busiest highway. The Canadian road safety product innovator and manufacturer was retained by the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario (MTO) to install automated traffic control
  • Worldwide success of instant pothole repair system
    February 23, 2012
    Ultracrete claims its Instant Road Repair is now proving popular worldwide, having been used in over 25 countries including Australia, China, Germany, Italy, Japan, Kenya, New Zealand and Switzerland. The product is being used in an array of duties including airports, footpaths, driveways, road construction and utilities, as well as for in-filling cable ducts, trenches, core holes, manhole surrounds and drains. The firm says that the product can be used to repair damage caused by freeze/ thaw cycles and bre
  • Bridge inspection: destructive versus non-destructive methods
    January 6, 2015
    Tens of thousands of bridges in the United States are in desperate need of repair. But where to begin analysing their deteriorating state? Roger Roberts* investigates tips and techniques for ensuring bridge safety The average age of America’s more than 600,000 crumbling bridges is 42 years – many are 60 to 80 years old. The situation is dire, with many described as functionally obsolete, according to the American Society of Civil Engineers’ latest edition of its Report Card for America’s Infrastructure.
  • Developments in noise-reducing road surfaces
    February 17, 2012
    Mixtures with special additives are being produced for roads, offering noise reduction and aiding recycling. Patrick Smith reports. Noise-reducing road surfacings have been used in motorway construction for some time. But relatively new are noise-optimised surfacings used on roads in towns that do not follow a standard concept.Road trials with these materials have taken place in Germany since 2007 and have been prioritised due to the European Union Guidelines on the Assessment and Management of Environmenta