The surface dressing process is very weather dependent and cannot be applied to wet or cold roads or during high air humidity levels or very high road temperatures.
The process followed is:
- the road is swept and cleared
- bitumen is spread across the width of the road
- chips are spread on the road
- the chippings are embedded using a roller - the movement of traffic also helps the material to embed
- following completion of the work there will be some stone loss - this will be removed by a suction sweeper in stages with the first sweep normally taking place one or two days after the initial process
- traffic signs will be left in place advising of the risk of loose chippings and showing an advisory speed limit
- when there is no further loss of chippings, temporary signage will be removed
- further sweeping may be necessary if there is continued stone loss
Depending on traffic flows, it can take up to six months for the road to reach its finished state