Veteran grader driver Rex Hockley and his former employer Graeme Rodger agree that better drainage and maintenance are the answers to make decaying roads last longer.

“You’ve got to get a good ride when you’re making a road and get the right run-off for water drainage,” Mr Hockley said. “The art of roadmaking hasn’t changed, but they don’t seem to put the necessary work into foundations and drainage now.  Water should drain off as quickly as possible and shoulders should be trimmed regularly.”

Mr Rodger blamed declining government funding, engineering methods and more heavy trucks on minor roads. “They don’t clean out the table drains enough and rainwater seeps under the pavement which then becomes like a sponge,” he said. 

“Very rarely does a road wear out from the top. The damage is from water underneath.”