With the arrival of spring, the annual solvent has entered the gravel road sections in many places in Latvia. Vehicle weight restrictions have been introduced. Residents of more distant places complain about the condition of these roads, but there will be something that can be repaired only in drier weather.
Drivers are uneasy about poor gravel roads. Latvian state roads, meanwhile, emphasize that it is impossible to avoid the spring solution.
Half of the roads maintained by the state are covered with gravel. And every spring, when the solution enters, the driving conditions on them significantly deteriorate. And in order not to damage the road even more, a restriction is introduced on them every year – a ban on the movement of heavy vehicles.
Throughout Latvia, the solvent has entered more than 600 gravel road sections.
“Most are in the vicinity of Jēkabpils, Dagda, Ventspils. Its geography is quite wide. Indeed, this solvent sees the whole territory of the country. There are practically no counties where there would be no mass restriction on any road, ”points out Anna Kononova, a representative of Latvijas Valsts ceļi (LVC).
However, the residents I met on the Ogre side say that after the winter, the gravel roads are already paved and called for repairs. Rises entered in many places, in some sections the car is shaken by a pit behind the pit.
However, LVC emphasizes that at present we have to put up with the condition of gravel roads as they are. Adjustment work will be possible only when the condition of the road allows heavy machinery to climb on it.
“It is not possible to carry out maintenance work while the road is soaked and unable to withstand heavy machinery, because the maintenance machinery is also heavy. When such a heavy vehicle enters a road that has lost its load-bearing capacity, it can be permanently damaged. It will take a lot of investment to put the road in order afterwards, ”explains Kononova.
Every year, the total length of gravel roads in Latvia decreases. LVC admits that they are rarely paved. More often in such roads, gravel is replaced by the so-called black surface.-
“It is not asphalting, because these roads are not as load-bearing as asphalt roads. However, roads with double surface treatment are much more comfortable and friendly to the residents – they do not foam, they do not dissolve in spring,” says Kononova.
This year, such surface treatment on state-owned gravel roads is planned for about 70 kilometers. However, the total length of unpaved roads will still be around 10,000 kilometers.
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