Probe into fading Cape Town road markings
The City of Cape Town has appointed the SABS to investigate the quality of paint used for road and line markings across the city.
|||Cape Town - Transport for Cape Town (TCT), the City of Cape Town’s transport authority, has appointed the SA Bureau of Standards (SABS) to investigate the quality of paint used for road and line markings across the city.
“During the past 18 months or so, we have noticed that some road and line markings across the city fade faster in some areas than in others,” mayoral committee member: Transport for Cape Town Brett Herron said in a statement.
“As such, we have appointed the SABS to investigate the quality of paint that is being used by Transport for Cape Town’s road depots and by our line marking contractors to determine whether this is caused by substandard quality paint, different application techniques, or other reasons such as the environment or traffic volume,” he said.
Under ideal conditions, it was expected that the road and line markings would last at least two years, but the paint may fade sooner in areas with high traffic volumes.
The investigation would be conducted in two phases, with the first phase focusing on the quality of paint used and the second being a trial and monitoring exercise to determine the effect of environmental factors on the longevity of the markings.
“The resistance to traffic wear test, which is a requirement of the SABS specification, will take place over the next few months where the wear will be examined every 90 days after the lines and markings have been painted.
“The SABS will also investigate the other aspects of the SABS specification, such as storage environment, viscosity, the manner of application (machine, brush, or roller), the colour, resistance to sagging, drying time, resistance to abrasion and the paint’s skid resistance and retro reflectivity,” he said.
The products from the supplier were SABS-approved and the three companies contracted by the city for line marking were also obliged in terms of their contract to use SABS-compliant paint.
The SABS would conduct site sampling in four areas across the city to establish whether the paint had been diluted or tampered with. They would also take samples at sites where TCT’s road depots were responsible for line marking.
“Once the quality of the paint has been assessed, the trial and monitoring phase will kick off to determine the effect of the environment on the longevity of the markings.
“The outcome of the SABS investigation will assist us to understand why certain markings are fading faster in some areas and what we can do to prevent this from happening. We can improve the safety on our roads with good quality line markings and road signage that are visible, in particular at night and in inclement weather.
“Furthermore, given that we have spent approximately R42 million on road and line markings in the past financial year (2014/15), this investigation will assist us in ensuring that the city receives value for money,” Herron said.
African News Agency