West Sussex County Council in their infinite wisdom have decided to tar and chip the 5.5 miles of road between Turners Hill and Lindfield 😡

It didn’t need doing AT ALL and tar and chip is the possibly the crappiest remedial road surface going, but hey they have a programme to work to and our rate payers money to waste. 🙄

I sent them a particularly sarcastic note pointing out that 30,000 + cyclists were going to use it on Sunday and hoping that there weren’t going to be any incidents.

Fingers crossed there are no accidents or indeed punctures.

On the plus side the forecast is reasonable temps and just a chance of rain.

They do tar and chip a lot around here, it makes you a bit wary but TBH, I’ve never had any real problems with it

just keep an eye out for the piles of gravel

at least Ditchling Beacon is lovely after a recent ‘proper’ resurface 🙂

T&C gets better after a week of bedding down* but the pisstaking, lowest bidders who’ve obviously been backhanding the council for over 25 years contractors Hazel & Jefferies make no effort to backfill any pot holes. – if you fill them up with chippings, you can’t see the hole.

* = when most of it has been swept away

Tarring and chipping is, unfortunately, a relatively cheap way of sealing a road surface that is prone to cracking. It’s also a good way of providing a level of grip to a surface that has a low skid resistance.

Unfortunately, a lot of the time the resurfacing is done at the wrong time of year, so either the tar sets to quickly for the chips to set, or it’s too hot and the chips and tar just flow to the sides and leave nice ruts. Same thing with the drifts of chips you get on corners if too much is applied.

Still it’s cheaper than resurfacing.

Eeejuts! It’s the piles of chippings which accumulate soon after the surface has been laid which are dangerous to cyclists.

Still it’s cheaper than resurfacing.

True but unfortunately in this instance, a total waste of money as this bit of road DOESN’T NEED DOING.

I could rather sadly, give you a intimate commentary on where every crease, blemish etc is on this route and there’s about 50 sqm that could do with planing off and laying properly.

Oh and don’t get me started on the corrugated field that is Lindfield High St (but at least they’re not doing that)

anyone else doing it then? still undecided on gears or SS. did it 5 years ago on a mtb with slicks.

Cycling from Brighton up to London and back down again because the trains suck

Bludy Ell

Had a reply from the council saying they’ve postponed the tar and chipping until after the ride. 😯

Reeesult!

A Council makes sensible common sense decision rather than being obstructive and pigheaded! Fair play to them, it will have no doubt disrupted their planning etc.

still undecided on gears or SS.

Hi Thom. I did the night ride three weeks ago to Brighton on my singlespeed (26inch slicks and 50:18). It felt just right for it and I got to Brighton in 3 hours 50 without trying too hard. I thought SS was a good way of emphasising to myself that I wasn’t treating it as any kind of competition. If it’s anything like the night ride there’ll be a huge ammount of people on bikes of varying degrees of inappropriateness, including plenty of fixies.

still undecided on gears or SS.

Hi Thom. I did the night ride three weeks ago to Brighton on my singlespeed (26inch slicks and 50:18). It felt just right for it and I got to Brighton in 3 hours 50 without trying too hard. I thought SS was a good way of emphasising to myself that I wasn’t treating it as any kind of competition. If it’s anything like the night ride there’ll be a huge ammount of people on bikes of varying degrees of inappropriateness, including plenty of fixies.

Local council has done just this on a few local roads, none of which have signs to warn you so my commute was interesting as I went sailing onto a road akin to a pebble beach a couple of times. It was flanked by signs saying ‘Improving local cycling routes’ Not sure whats improved though… just seem to get showered with stones everytime a car overtakes me.

Good luck to all riding and hope the weather holds out.

Here’s the reply to my sarky note below

Dear Mr Anton

Thank you for contacting us regarding the surface dressing in Turners Hill/Ardingly. Just so that you are aware we have postponed the work planned here until after the Cycle race has taken place.

I will pass your other comments to my colleagues in the engineering team.

Kind Regards

Maureen

Turners Hill – Ardingly – Lindfield surface dressing.

Any chance that we could have a last minute outbreak of common sense re this planned work?

Notwithstanding the complete waste of time and our money that goes to Hazel & Jefferies to throw chippings all over the countryside, had it not occurred to anyone that the London to Brighton bike ride will be using this stretch of road on Sunday?

As a cyclist, ‘remedial surface dressing’ aka tar and chip is deeply unpleasant to cycle on and this particular stretch of road is actually in reasonable condition.

I suspect the same won’t be said when 30000+ cyclists wend their way over this a few days after it’s been laid.

Furthermore the cowboys, sorry contractors, make no effort to patch potholes before hand so not only do you get a very rough surface to travel on, you get the added bonus of guessing where the stone filled pot holes are.

I really hope there aren’t any mishaps on Sunday.

I guess it’s too late now but would it not be more cost effective to plane and relay the small sections of damaged road, in particular the Paxhill section, and pretty much all of Lindfield High St?

These sections aren’t great to drive on and downright horrible on two wheels.

No doubt phrases like you sarky twunt, winker, etc etc have been doing the rounds at WSCC but meh! 😆 😛