Concrete details: Why icy roads trouble the Dutch, but not the Flemish
As Belgium awoke to snow on Sunday morning, there were 15 accidents reported in Flanders, compared to 329 in the Netherlands
Ice ice maybe
According to VTM weather forecaster Frank Duboccage, roads in the Netherlands are largely made of porous concrete, which has a top layer of large particles that allow rainwater to pass through. “The advantage is that no water remains on the road surface, so there's no splashing,” Duboccage explained.
On the other hand, the water sits inside the concrete and forms a solid sheet of ice.
The concrete is referred to differently in the Netherlands and in Flanders; here, it’s known as zeer open asfalt (very open asphalt), while our neighbours call it zeer open asfaltbeton (very open asphalt-concrete). In layman’s terms, however, both sides agree on the name fluisterasfalt (whispering asphalt) because of its noise-reducing qualities.
On Belgian roads, the water is constantly being disturbed by traffic, and so never has time to freeze. Still, the situation was serious enough for the Flemish roads and traffic agency to advise not driving at the weekend unless absolutely necessary.
And for future frosty days, a few tips from motoring organisation Touring: adjust your speed to the conditions; slow down using the engine rather than the brakes; avoid sudden manoeuvres; exercise caution and anticipate dangers before they happen.
Photo courtesy Lisa Williams/Flickr
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