In one word: skills. The white “paint” is made from thermoplastic resin mixed with titanium dioxide pigments and tiny reflective glass beads. On major roads, special marking machines are used that deliver paint under computer control. But this still leaves the task of following the survey line precisely and at the speed appropriate to the conditions – a task for a highly skilled (and highly paid) “coxswain”.
On smaller roads, where the job is even more difficult, the paint is applied from a “sidecar”, a simple metal cart equipped with a heater to allow the paint to flow. The skill now is to follow the lines precisely at the correct speed to ensure the correct thickness and width of the lines, and to stop and start the process to achieve the correct design.
Geoff Ridd, managing director of RT Roadmarkings in Taunton, estimates only one in 1,000 people have adopted the technology.
Post time: Oct-25-2024