A musing on roads, holes and wheels by John Brophy.
Sitting idly in a little local gridlock caused by roadworks, I was musing about the Hole in the Road and its place in Irish life and, indeed, folklore. Even in Brendan Behan's time, there were comedy sketches about workmen dropping their shovels to cut a birthday cake: first anniversary of the hole, you see.
Another mystery is why, as soon as a road is newly surfaced, it's often dug up again. I then recalled a notice to cable-laying contractors which said, in a legal way, that they had better get the job right the first time, because it was going to stay put for five years.
Armed with this observation and musings, I went to see William Horgan, senior engineer with Dún Laoghaire Rathdown Co Council. He explained that a huge range of services can demand a road opening: sewerage, water supply, telecommunications, gas and electricity. In days of old phones were simple, but since deregulation somewhere between 80 and 100 companies could demand a road opening, though about half of them are content to work with existing infrastructure.
The Communications Regulation Act, enacted this year, deals specifically with roadworks. Under Section 53 of the new law, anyone who opens a road without permission is liable to a fine of up to €1 million on indictment.
In places such as town centres where there is a large demand for broadband services, the local authority is actually providing underground ducting for cables when they work on a road. But they are specifically excluded from making a profit on renting the way-leave.
The key to minimising disruption is planning. All road openings require a licence. Unless there is an emergency, a licence to open a road will be granted, usually within 21 days of application. During that time, engineers have to inspect the site and prepare an impact assessment.
Given the current insurance climate, public liability is a big issue. Dún Laoghaire Rathdown demands cover of €634, 690 for all work on main roads.
About 80 different people and departments must be circulated with details, so that, if they have any plans for underground work, they can bring them forward. One opening can serve several services.
Each work will have its own licence and conditions, sometimes including a performance bond on making good the road surface and completing the work within a time limit. Since last April there have been regulations for road openings and reinstatements.
In Dublin City, the Director of Traffic has published a 100-page report, Directions for the Control and Management of Roadworks in Dublin City, which gives detailed instructions on matters such as restoring manhole covers and making them flush with a renewed road surface, something which motorcyclists regard as a priority.
Many roadways can be done only at restricted hours. For a contractor this involves huge expenses, both in paying night work rates and having to get equipment on and off site during the allowed time. Detailed charges are set out for restoring markings and parking bays.
For major works, especially the LUAS line, we use London's system whereby planned big roadworks are notified in advance, so that regular users have fair warning. The whole aim is to give everyone fair opportunity to get their work done, and then build a road surface that will last.
"For instance," says William Horgan, "if you take a road such as the new one at Leopardstown, we would fight very hard to stop anyone opening that again."
There are always trade-offs. The original idea behind grass verges was to allow services to be buried where they could easily be excavated. Then residents want flowering cherry-trees to enhance an area and its property values, even though the roots crack the footpaths. The parks departments may like cherry trees: the roads departments do not.
In ideal conditions, Roberto Romano, senior executive engineer with Dún Laoghaire Rathdown Co Council, explains, a well-made road can last up to 25 years. But people have rights to water, gas and electricity.
If a gas leak occurs, it's obvious that the road must be dug up, no matter how new and lovely it looks. But, even with the best restoration, there is a seam on the road and, when it rains, vehicle tyres act like high-pressure pumps, forcing water into the fissure and upsetting the foundation.
Forward planning is the answer. An engineering group from all four of Dublin's local authorities has the main task of co-ordinating planned works, and reconciling demands of different services and maintenance schedules.