Poor Quality 'White-Topping' Is Causing Crashes, Say Cops!

Road accidents have lately been on the rise in India. A recent incident on Nagpur's Ambazari Road reveals how the flaws in road design and construction, especially those of white-topped roads, can contribute to this count. Five people, including an elderly man and woman, fell off their two-wheelers due to the uneven surface level between the white-topped main road and the adjacent interlocking block pavement. Senior police officials from the place also believe that defective construction of White-topped roads is causing crashes.

A video shared online shows the host filming the people who were involved in the accident and explaining the details. Following the incident, locals placed stones to warn motorists of the level differences. The video soon went viral, triggering immediate action from the state's Public Works Department (PWD). Authorities got the path repaired soon. The interlocking (I) blocks near the defective patch of road were removed and realigned after getting the height difference fixed.

This issue isn't limited to Ambazari Road alone. Defective stretches are also present on Pratap Nagar Road, East High Court Road, Khamla, the Inner Ring Road, and Residency Road. These have been constructed by different agencies. This points to a larger game of widespread corruption and quality compromises.

Two-wheeler riders are the worst affected by the faults in construction and design. Things get worse during the monsoon. The poorly maintained I-block sections tend to sink or develop wide gaps or cracks. These can be dangerous to motorists- especially two-wheeler riders.

If for some reason, they choose to ride on the I-block section, the tyres could rub against the uneven surface and cause the vehicle to lose balance. For a two-wheeler that's doing a speed of 25 kph, even a level difference of 15mm can prove to be extremely dangerous. Strict audits and inspections should be done on freshly constructed patches to spot and fix such faults.

Various road-owning agencies have recently been converting conventional roads to cement-covered ones, calling it a more durable and low-maintenance solution. As much as Rs 2,000 crore has been allotted towards this.

In July last year, the Bombay High Court's Nagpur bench had ordered that the issues around badly built roads be addressed as soon as possible. The bench observed that even freshly built sections had issues like poor drainage and waterlogging.

White-Topping And The Headache It Brings Along!

As you know, white-topping is the practice of covering the asphalt (bituminous layer) with a layer of concrete. The layer of cement is claimed to strengthen the asphalt underneath. It is usually 100-200mm in thickness.

In India, the quality of road work is very inconsistent. There are a lot of agencies and bodies which undertake these. The actual quality, however, varies across regions. While you may find well-built roads in some places, the quality of roads in others could be poor.

White-topped roads in many places have uneven surfacing. These have caused multiple crashes in the past. In previous cases, we saw many users describe the travelling through these patches as ' spine-breaking'.

Travelling through uneven road surfaces can be very tiring and can even make vehicles bounce. People say that many of these patches were good before getting white-topped, and the concreting has ruined them. Many see this as a classic case of taxpayer money drain...

India currently has a lot of infrastructural development projects going on and the government is trying is best to ensure quality levels. Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has already made it clear that strict action will be taken against the companies, agencies or contractors who fail to ensure proper quality standards.