THERE is a new type of road paint that can make driving on the North Shore significantly safer in rainy conditions, according to a local resident.
North Vancouver's Deryk Upton, a contractor for Specialized Pavement Markings, said a new type of pavement marking technology called Continuous Wet Night is already being used in the Pacific Northwest and should be installed across British Columbia.
"It's difficult to drive on a road here, it's hilly and twisty," Upton said. "Everyone looks to the ground for visual aid to drive straight and stay in their lane, and when they can't see the lines they just hope they are in the right spot."
District of North Vancouver resident Heather Harivel has similar feelings about the roads on the North Shore.
"Definitely it's a concern to me. Especially on rainy nights," Harivel said. "I tend not to drive much at night because it is hard to see the lines."
Harivel often drives to Washington State and notices a big difference.
"When I have been down there when it was raining I have noticed that the lines were much easier to see and were a lot brighter," said Harivel.
For Harivel, Highway 1, Marine Drive and Keith Road are some of the most difficult roads to drive on the North Shore at night when it's raining.
On a clear day or night, drivers see pavement markings on the road due to the colour contrast of the lines on the asphalt. During dry nighttime conditions when headlights from a vehicle hit the glass beads in the paint, the light is reflected back to the driver making it possible for them to see the lines on the road.
In wet conditions at night the same glass beads are covered in water, causing light that hits the beads to become distorted and making the line barely visible to drivers.
However, the application of microcrystalline ceramic beads in Continuous Wet Night uses the water to create superior reflectivity back to the driver, said Upton.
According to 3M technologies, microcrystalline beads have a very high refractive index and are extremely durable. Eric Hedman, 3M marketing manager, said 3M's all-weather optics technology includes the ceramic beads, as well as large glass beads which make it easier for motorists to see the road on a wet night.
Alex Milek, supervisor of transportation engineering for the District of North Vancouver said the district is well aware of the 3M beads technology, but said it's very expensive to use.
He said residents have raised concerns about the markings on Mount Seymour Parkway and on Main Street.
"There is a greater emphasis from the public to have road markings improved," said Milek.
Nanaimo became the first city in Canada to see Continuous Wet Night pavement markings last year. Darren Englund, regional project manager for the Ministry of Transportation, said the ministry was looking for a product with reflectivity that could last. "What we found is when we paint the lines on the road we generally have to come back the following year and repaint them to a certain level of reflectivity," he said.
According to Englund, Specialized Pavement Markings inlaid roughly nine kilometres of Continuous Wet Night in both directions on Island Highway between Kipp Road and Brenton Page Road. He added that only the dashed centre line was given the new product. The cost was approximately $120,000.
"We didn't want to go and spend a whole bunch of money to do all six lines on the highway because we weren't positive on the product," said Englund.
The ministry is still trying to figure out what product will meet their requirements for reflectivity, durability and cost.
"We need to see a cost savings after five years," he said. "We know they are going to drop off, because historically they get a lot of wear and tear on them. But, say four years out, if it still holds its reflectivity then we know we got a great product."
Meanwhile, Milek said the District of North Vancouver is testing inlaid thermoplastic markings on Marine Drive, Mount Seymour Road, Main Street and Capilano Road.
"We are very excited about this product but it's quite expensive. . . . We have partnered with ICBC to put this product in these test locations," Milek said. "We are the first on the North Shore to use it."
Milek believes the district's roads provide adequate markings for motorists but said there is room for improvement. "There are always going to be concerns until we convert to the new and improved stuff," he said.
"We have a limited budget these days and we have to do the best we can with what we have," he said. "The 3M bead might be something that we can look at in the future."
John McMahon, District of West Vancouver assistant manager of roads and transportation, said that they are informed of new pavement marking products all the time.
Brian Willock, City of North Vancouver section manager for streets and fleet, said he hasn't receive any complaints regarding road paint on city streets.
"Not in my experience," he said. "The ones that I am aware of are crosswalks that fade. We typically repaint crosswalks every year or two."
Willock added that the city could paint its entire road network with standard oil-based paints for roughly $25,000.
"It's way cheaper than these other products," he said. "But we always try to be aware of what is going on with newer products."
