The pitiful state of the roads

[ianmck]

I would assume the contracts for fixing the roads goes to whoever offer the service at the cheapest price. Consequently they use the cheapest materials. The roads rarely get resurfaced, just filled in with cheap material which isn't even levelled off properly. Almost always washes back out the first time it rains. It's sometimes worse driving over their repair jobs than it is hitting the original pothole 

[tomcatin]

The problem is to reconstruct a carriageway requires large capital investment, so with limited budgets roads authorities tend to revert to patching. Things are further complicated by the fact that many of the major roads, while been owned by the Scottish Government, are maintained by contractors (Bear Scotland, Amey) or by concession holders (DBFO roads such as the M77/GSO, M74/M8/M73, M80, M74 from Douglas to the border and AWPR). While the SG are pretty good at managing the trunk road contractors and concession holders, they will endeavor to put off large capital works to the last moment.

I for one would not like to be cycling on the main roads around Kinrossshire, the edges of teh carriageway are a minefield of potholes and collapsed manholes (normally containing a destroyed cone upside down).   

[Bobfly]

A few weeks ago I was going home in the evening on the A9 dual carriageway between Dunblane and the Crieff turn off. I passed 7 cars with their hazard lights on, four  stopped in the carriageway and three in different lay-byes further on. On the village website in the morning 10 cars were reported with broken wheels and/or punctures. Breakdown vans were called in from lots of garages!! The inside carriageway was closed for two days until some patch repairs were done beside which there now is a sign showing "Uneven Surface".

[SoldierPmr]

Similar issues down here. A stretch of the M4 that runs from Swansea to Carmarthenshire has a bad surface. The answer is to stick some 50 signs over it. Welsh labour insist on making driving more miserable here too. The heads of the valley road is still being built which started in the 80s with average speed camera for 40mph for 18 miles. The old road was national speed limit. Once work is complete they want to have the full thin to a 50. From Cardiff through Newport M4 is 50 for "emissions" same with M4 through port Talbot. All they have done is caused more congestion. When they come to review the emissions tests they will say the 50mph were not successful in order to add a toll to use the M4.

They are also going to decrease all 30 areas to 20 in built up areas. Fucking bonkers

[SoldierPmr]

The Uk government want us out of our vehicles and back on public transport. I've heard some councils want to bring the  factory towns back where everyone lives and works within the same proximity.