Whats red tarmac made from

[thexav]

I see that some bits of road around the UK are laid with patches of red tarmac. Mostly when you come into inner town areas?

Is this just coloured tarmac or is it a special highly grip surface? What is is made of?

 

[Loz]

Crushed pedestrians!
It's a high grip surface normally used on the approach to foot crossings around our way. There's also a cream coloured high friction that does the same job that they put on tight bends & on the exit of some islands.
Both get peeled up by bus's & lorry's! :bigsmile:
Don't know the exact make up, but I'll do a google & find out...

 

[Loz]

Binga-ho!...
Shell grip.
http://www.highwaysmaintenance.com/Skiddata .html

I didn't know the stuff gets better the older it gets. Worth remembering when you next throw your car around a bend with new layer of shellgrip, it may not be as grippy as you might expect. :blink::bigsmile:

 

[turbonutter69]

Binga-ho!...
Shell grip.
http://www.highwaysmaintenance.com/Skiddata .html

I didn't know the stuff gets better the older it gets. Worth remembering when you next throw your car around a bend with new layer of shellgrip, it may not be as grippy as you might expect. :blink::bigsmile:

Thats the fun bit.

 

[HDi fun]

It's an organic compound that can also be made available in grey or ash white.

It does provide exceptional grip compared to other surface treatments.

On a hot summer day it can emit aromatics whose smells are not dissimilar to that of Jeye's fluid, which is an industrial disinfectant, and can sometimes smell like overcooked brake linings.

Perhaps the brake odour is because it's allowed drivers to anchor up suddenly and severely. So we'll overlook the possible need for disinfectants

 

[CitizenErazed]

If it's so great how come they don't make entire tracks out of the stuff? or use it more on the roads?

 

[WLBjork]

High friction means it's going to be harder on the tyres.

I also seem to remember it's expensive, even for the very thin coatings used on the roads.

 

[Chris Green]

I was always a bit suspicious about how they decide the length of the specially-treated strips, for example on approaches to pedestrian crossings.

Some seem quite short given the traffic levels on the road in question, so that leaves the poor b****r at the back trying to anchor up on ordinary diesel-oil-strewn wet tarmac, whilst everybody else is coming briskly to a halt on 'sandpaper'.

The moral being "Don't be the last one on the grippy stuff" if you don't want someone sailing into to you.

 

[obi_waynne]

Or fit a set of bull bars chris!