Potholes are being fixed in two minutes in an innovative new approach being trialled by a London council in a new technique called “spray injection patching”.
The three-step process starts with pressurised air being pumped into the pothole to remove dirt and debris. The hole is then sprayed and coated with cold bitumen to cover and seal any cracks, followed by a final layer of aggregate applied at high speed.
The entire process - which doesn't require the road to be closed - takes just a couple of minutes to sort and vehicles can pass over the repaired section of the road immediately afterwards.
The spray injection patching machine, made by road repair specialists Velocity, can fix over 100 potholes per day. The system is not just quick and efficient, it's also cheaper than traditional techniques. About two thirds cheaper. Furthermore, Velocity's patching is cold applied and zero waste-to-landfill is generated. Compared to traditional pothole repair processes, the company claims CO2 savings of 90 percent are achieved.
Last month the RAC (a UK motoring organisation) revealed that eight in 10 drivers nationwide reported having to take sudden evasive action to avoid hitting potholes, and says that anger with the poor state of Britain’s local roads had reached a nine year peak. So, potentially, Velocity's new spray injection patching could just be the saviour for British drivers.