Monday 23 February 2004 - News - Road safety
More snow and ice brings out the 'sticky grit'
More icy weather across
Britain has brought a new kind of 'sticky grit' to the roads, the
Highways Agency said this week.
As snow showers and sub-zero temperatures once again affected many parts of the country, the Agency said that a natural sugar-based product, which is less corrosive to vehicles and more environmentally friendly, was now being added to the traditional salt used for tackling icy roads.
Called Safecote, the product has been trialled in the UK by leading road maintenance contractor Atkins with "great success", according to the Highways Agency.
The substance has proved to be 82% less corrosive to gritting lorries and structures such as bridges and barriers, as well as more effective at preventing ice on roads.
Atkins is the first company in the UK to trial what the Agency is calling "sticky grit", which has been in use in North America for 10 years. It was used on a stretch of the M4 between junction 18 at Bath and junction 16 at Swindon during recent winter conditions.
The product is also proving cheaper to use, as although it costs slightly more than salt, up to 30% less Safecote is needed to apply to highways because it adheres better than salt.
Max Herd
As snow showers and sub-zero temperatures once again affected many parts of the country, the Agency said that a natural sugar-based product, which is less corrosive to vehicles and more environmentally friendly, was now being added to the traditional salt used for tackling icy roads.
Called Safecote, the product has been trialled in the UK by leading road maintenance contractor Atkins with "great success", according to the Highways Agency.
The substance has proved to be 82% less corrosive to gritting lorries and structures such as bridges and barriers, as well as more effective at preventing ice on roads.
Atkins is the first company in the UK to trial what the Agency is calling "sticky grit", which has been in use in North America for 10 years. It was used on a stretch of the M4 between junction 18 at Bath and junction 16 at Swindon during recent winter conditions.
The product is also proving cheaper to use, as although it costs slightly more than salt, up to 30% less Safecote is needed to apply to highways because it adheres better than salt.
Max Herd
