Paths for Walking and Cycling
The majority of accidents and injuries related to pedestrians and cyclists are caused by slippery conditions. However, the conditions of the pedestrian and cycling paths covered by the winter maintenance are being arranged in such a way that it is as safe as possible for road users to move around all year round. Many things cause the road to be slippery, such as super-cooled water that has rained on the road or severe frost. Heavy rainfall can also wash the sand off the road and the water can freeze on the road surface.
If wet snow has accumulated on the surface of the road, it can freeze in cold air. On the so-called main skulls, the warm weather has melted the surface of the wet, which the night frost freezes again to become very slippery. Of course, how well the tire or the sole of the shoe holds its own is also a factor.
Challenging weather conditions in terms of winter care procedures have become more common. Due to the temperature falling on both sides of zero, the surface of the road is often freezing, even though the air is already a few degrees plus. When it rains in this kind of weather, it immediately freezes on top of the sand on the road surface. Even if the road was sanded just a moment ago, the surface of the road can still feel slippery. If sub-cooled water rains in freezing weather, it is not very easy to prevent the resulting slipperiness.
The paths for walking and cycling are sanded with coarse gravel for a specific reason
Winter care does not aim to create summer heat. Timeliness, uniformity, snow, ice and slush removal and slip prevention are essential in the maintenance of pedestrian and bicycle paths. Especially on pedestrian walkways, special attention is paid to the smoothness of the surface and the prevention of slipperiness.
Maintenance has a significant impact on the attractiveness, safety and accessibility of walking and cycling. Low-quality maintenance can even completely prevent the movement of, for example, the elderly. Slip prevention of pedestrian and cycling paths managed by centers is mainly handled by sandblasting the entire width of the road. In this way, the aim is to reduce the numerous accidents caused by slipping.
The sandblasting material used in winter maintenance is precisely defined in maintenance contracts. The grain size of the wreath used to prevent slippage is 0–6 millimeters. Usually, a wreath with a grain size of 2-6 millimeters is used.
With a sharp-angled wreath, you get better grip on the icy road surface than with fine sand, because the sand sinks quickly under the melted snow surface. The sharp edges of the granular wreath stay better on the surface of the snow. In addition, when wet, fine sand easily sticks to the sandblaster. An elongated pointed wreath is not used.
The sand is only removed in spring, not in the middle of winter
In the maintenance of the most important pedestrian and bicycle paths, it is required that the roads are maintained in the morning before school and work traffic, and serve leisure time movement in the evenings and weekends. In winter, however, the weather conditions change quickly and, for example, a damp road surface can freeze again during the night. In this case, it is good that sand has been left on the road to prevent slippage, because measures to prevent slippage always take their own time.
A rough wreath may break the bike’s tires, but safety is the a and o of everything. Cost reasons also cause the fact that sand cannot be removed from the path of pedestrians or cyclists in the middle of winter. Sandblasting sands are cleaned in the spring after the night frosts are over. Usually, the sandblasting sands are removed by the end. Whether it’s slippery or not, in winter you should anticipate the weather and adjust your schedule according to the weather. During the winter months, you should always reserve more time for travel.
