A week ago, I and all my neighbours received a letter from ACT TCCS (Transport Canberra and City Services), to advise of night time resurfacing work at the Intersection of Hindmarsh Drive and Melrose Drive, as well as Melrose Drive and Brewer Street, Phillip. The work is taking place between February 17 and 19, between 7pm and 6am each night (except for the night of the February 10 and 11).
While the work is taking place, the speed limit is reduced to 40km per hour, temporary lane closures are in place, and traffic controllers are on sight each night to assist local motorists to access their homes and businesses during the hours the work is taking place. Minor delays are to be expected during these times, as I observed myself last night, due to construction vehicle movements and the like.
As someone who likes watching ‘big boys and their toys’ (no offence intended to female road-workers – and it was an all male crew last night) and being right next door to my apartment complex, I thought this would be a good chance to get some nice photos of the work taking place, for those who like ‘construction porn’ as I sometimes do. I am not that mechanically inclined, but I do like watching these machines be operated and go about their business, there is something oddly serene about watching them turn rubble into hard paved flatness.
According to one of the friendly workers I spoke to briefly, what they are specifically doing is called Profiling or Milling, which according to Wikipedia: “is the process of removing at least part of the surface of a paved area such as a road, bridge, or parking lot. Milling removes anywhere from just enough thickness to level and smooth the surface to a full depth removal”. This involves recycling the top layer of road, as opposed to just putting a new layer down on top, which keeps the road height the same overall and is better on the environment than resurfacing the entire road.
I am advised the work is currently on schedule and expected to be completed Thursday night as scheduled, but if you are travelling through this area between 7pm and 6am at night during this week, consider an alternate route if you don’t want to be delayed at all. After the resurfacing is done line workers will be out in the wee hours of the morning chalking new lines and burning them in with the massive ‘flame cannons’ they use for this.
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