North Essex surface dressing remedial works

Following surface dressing works carried out in May to roads in and around Colchester, some of the stone chippings didn’t stick properly to the bitumen layer below. This resulted in excessive dust and loose chippings.

The contractor is now set to start remedial works on the roads affected, at their own cost.

Councillor Kevin Bentley, Essex County Council Cabinet Member for Infrastructure, said: “I apologise to everyone affected by these problems. I insisted immediately on a full investigation and that this work must be done as soon as we understood the problem, at the contractor’s expense, to put it right.

“The new process with an extra sealing coat will embed the stones more quickly and produce a better surface in the end. We have previously surface dressed hundreds of miles of roads of all types in Essex with this national standard treatment without problems, but the lessons from this short period have been well learned. Thank you to all motorists and residents who have used common sense to put up with these issues with immense patience.”

The A134 Nayland Rd, Colchester will be Surface Dressed on Friday 31 May with an extra sealing coat applied on Sunday and Monday.

On Saturday the A131 Ballingdon Hill/Sudbury Road will be dressed and then sealed on Sunday.

On Monday and Tuesday, similar work will be done on Lexden Road and between Monday and Wednesday on Circular Road. Swann Street will be done between Tuesday and Thursday.

Residents are advised to check signs at the roadside if there is any adverse weather, as timings could change. Most of this work will require road closures, so please follow diversions and allow some extra time.

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