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Road debris, a form of road hazard, is
debris Debris (, ) is rubble, wreckage, ruins, litter and discarded garbage/refuse/trash, scattered remains of something destroyed, or, as in geology, large rock fragments left by a melting glacier, etc. Depending on context, ''debris'' can refer to ...
on or
off Off or OFF may refer to: Art and entertainment * ''Off'' (video game), a video game by Mortis Ghost. *Sven Väth, German DJ and singer who uses the pseudonym OFF * ''Off'' (album), by Ciwan Haco, 2006 * ''Off!'' (album), by Off! * Off!, an Americ ...
a
road A road is a linear way for the conveyance of traffic that mostly has an improved surface for use by vehicles (motorized and non-motorized) and pedestrians. Unlike streets, the main function of roads is transportation. There are many types o ...
. Road debris includes substances, materials, and objects that are foreign to the normal roadway environment. Debris may be produced by vehicular or non-vehicular sources, but in all cases it is considered
litter Litter consists of waste products that have been discarded incorrectly, without consent, at an unsuitable location. Litter can also be used as a verb; to litter means to drop and leave objects, often man-made, such as aluminum cans, paper cups ...
, a form of solid waste., AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety press release o
"The Safety Impact of Vehicle-Related Road Debris"
Gerry Forbes and John Robinson, June 2004
Debris may tend to collect in areas where vehicles do not drive, such as on the edges (shoulder), around
traffic island A traffic island is a solid or painted object in a road that channels traffic. It can also be a narrow strip of island between roads that intersect at an acute angle. If the island uses road markings only, without raised curbs or other physica ...
s, and junctions. Road spray or tire kickup is road debris (usually liquid water) that has been kicked up, pushed out, or sprayed out from a
tire A tire (American English) or tyre (British English) is a ring-shaped component that surrounds a Rim (wheel), wheel's rim to transfer a vehicle's load from the axle through the wheel to the ground and to provide Traction (engineering), t ...
. In 2004, a AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety study revealed that vehicle-related road debris caused 25,000 accidents and nearly 100 deaths a year.


Causes

Road debris can be caused by various factors, including objects falling off vehicles or
natural disaster A natural disaster is "the negative impact following an actual occurrence of natural hazard in the event that it significantly harms a community". A natural disaster can cause loss of life or damage property, and typically leaves some econ ...
s and weather, specifically wind, storms,
tornado A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, alt ...
es,
hurricanes A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depend ...
, etc. !--http://www.aaaexchange.com/Main/Default.asp?CategoryID=3&SubCategoryID=4&ContentID=313-->http://exchange.aaa.com/safety/roadway-safety/road-safety-tips/ Road Safety Tips - Road Debris
American Automobile Association American Automobile Association (AAA – commonly pronounced as "Triple A") is a federation of motor clubs throughout North America. AAA is a privately held not-for-profit national member association and service organization with over 60 m ...


Examples

Examples of road debris include: *
Particulates Particulates – also known as atmospheric aerosol particles, atmospheric particulate matter, particulate matter (PM) or suspended particulate matter (SPM) – are microscopic particles of solid or liquid matter suspended in the air. Th ...
,
dust Dust is made of fine particles of solid matter. On Earth, it generally consists of particles in the atmosphere that come from various sources such as soil lifted by wind (an aeolian process), volcanic eruptions, and pollution. Dust in ...
,
dirt Dirt is an unclean matter, especially when in contact with a person's clothes, skin, or possessions. In such cases, they are said to become dirty. Common types of dirt include: * Debris: scattered pieces of waste or remains * Dust: a gener ...
,
sand Sand is a granular material composed of finely divided mineral particles. Sand has various compositions but is defined by its grain size. Sand grains are smaller than gravel and coarser than silt. Sand can also refer to a textural class ...
, and mudAny of these can be mixed with liquid water to create "road spray". *
Asphalt Asphalt, also known as bitumen (, ), is a sticky, black, highly viscous liquid or semi-solid form of petroleum. It may be found in natural deposits or may be a refined product, and is classed as a pitch. Before the 20th century, the term ...
,
concrete Concrete is a composite material composed of fine and coarse aggregate bonded together with a fluid cement (cement paste) that hardens (cures) over time. Concrete is the second-most-used substance in the world after water, and is the most wid ...
,
pebble A pebble is a clast of rock with a particle size of based on the Udden-Wentworth scale of sedimentology. Pebbles are generally considered larger than granules ( in diameter) and smaller than cobbles ( in diameter). A rock made predomina ...
s, rocks/stones/
boulder In geology, a boulder (or rarely bowlder) is a rock fragment with size greater than in diameter. Smaller pieces are called cobbles and pebbles. While a boulder may be small enough to move or roll manually, others are extremely massive. In ...
s, etc. * Particles of
road salt Sodium chloride , commonly known as salt (although sea salt also contains other chemical salts), is an ionic compound with the chemical formula NaCl, representing a 1:1 ratio of sodium and chloride ions. With molar masses of 22.99 and 35.45 g/ ...
and other de-icers *
Litter Litter consists of waste products that have been discarded incorrectly, without consent, at an unsuitable location. Litter can also be used as a verb; to litter means to drop and leave objects, often man-made, such as aluminum cans, paper cups ...
,
food waste Food loss and waste is food that is not eaten. The causes of food waste or loss are numerous and occur throughout the food system, during production, processing, distribution, retail and food service sales, and consumption. Overall, about o ...
, animal feces/manure,
furniture Furniture refers to movable objects intended to support various human activities such as seating (e.g., stools, chairs, and sofas), eating ( tables), storing items, eating and/or working with an item, and sleeping (e.g., beds and hammocks) ...
, electrical appliances,
mattress A mattress is a large, usually rectangular pad for supporting a lying person. It is designed to be used as a bed, or on a bed frame as part of a bed. Mattresses may consist of a quilted or similarly fastened case, usually of heavy cloth, conta ...
es, and other items of garbage, trash, rubbish and refuse"Highway Debris, Long an Eyesore, Grows as Hazard"
''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', Patricia Leigh Brown, May 11, 2007
* Broken
glass Glass is a non- crystalline, often transparent, amorphous solid that has widespread practical, technological, and decorative use in, for example, window panes, tableware, and optics. Glass is most often formed by rapid cooling (quenchin ...
, nails,
screw A screw and a bolt (see '' Differentiation between bolt and screw'' below) are similar types of fastener typically made of metal and characterized by a helical ridge, called a ''male thread'' (external thread). Screws and bolts are used to ...
s, and other often sharp objects * Car parts, tire tread, etc. *
Bicycle A bicycle, also called a pedal cycle, bike or cycle, is a human-powered or motor-powered assisted, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, having two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. A is called a cyclist, or bicyclist. B ...
s,
roof rack A roof rack is a set of bars secured to the roof of a motor car. It is used to carry bulky items such as luggage, bicycles, canoes, kayaks, skis, or various carriers and containers. They allow users of an automobile to transport objects on ...
s,
luggage Baggage or luggage consists of bags, cases, and containers which hold a traveler's personal articles while the traveler is in transit. A modern traveler can be expected to have packages containing clothing, toiletries, small possessions, trip ...
,
lumber Lumber is wood that has been processed into dimensional lumber, including beams and planks or boards, a stage in the process of wood production. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, w ...
,
construction materials This is a list of building materials. Many types of building materials are used in the construction industry to create buildings and structures. These categories of materials and products are used by architects and construction project managers ...
, pallets, crates, and other solid objects accidentally or deliberately dropped from moving vehicles *
Animal Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms in the biological kingdom Animalia. With few exceptions, animals consume organic material, breathe oxygen, are able to move, can reproduce sexually, and go through an ontogenetic stage ...
corpses (
roadkill Roadkill is an animal or animals that have been struck and killed by drivers of motor vehicles on highways. Wildlife-vehicle collisions (WVC) have increasingly been the topic of academic research to understand the causes, and how it can be ...
) * Broken glass,
plastic Plastics are a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic materials that use polymers as a main ingredient. Their plasticity makes it possible for plastics to be moulded, extruded or pressed into solid objects of various shapes. This adapta ...
s, and other solid materials that fall off vehicles during traffic collisions * Ice,
snow Snow comprises individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water throughou ...
, rain
water Water (chemical formula ) is an inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living organisms (in which it acts as ...
(
puddle A puddle is a small accumulation of liquid, usually water, on a surface. It can form either by pooling in a depression on the surface, or by surface tension upon a flat surface. A puddle is generally shallow enough to walk through, and too sma ...
s or
flooding A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are an area of study of the discipline hydrolog ...
), and other
liquid A liquid is a nearly incompressible fluid that conforms to the shape of its container but retains a (nearly) constant volume independent of pressure. As such, it is one of the four fundamental states of matter (the others being solid, gas, ...
s such as grease and
engine oil Motor oil, engine oil, or engine lubricant is any one of various substances used for the lubrication of internal combustion engines. They typically consist of base oils enhanced with various additives, particularly antiwear additives, detergen ...
*
Plant Plants are predominantly photosynthetic eukaryotes of the kingdom Plantae. Historically, the plant kingdom encompassed all living things that were not animals, and included algae and fungi; however, all current definitions of Plantae excl ...
s and their parts:
branch A branch, sometimes called a ramus in botany, is a woody structural member connected to the central trunk of a tree (or sometimes a shrub). Large branches are known as boughs and small branches are known as twigs. The term '' twig'' usuall ...
es,
leaves A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, st ...
, sticks,
twig A twig is a thin, often short, branch of a tree or bush. The buds on the twig are an important diagnostic characteristic, as are the abscission scars where the leaves have fallen away. The color, texture, and patterning of the twig bark ar ...
s,
seed A seed is an embryonic plant enclosed in a protective outer covering, along with a food reserve. The formation of the seed is a part of the process of reproduction in seed plants, the spermatophytes, including the gymnosperm and angiosper ...
s, or
grass Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos and the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivated in lawns a ...
clippings.


Effects


Road surface

Road debris is a
hazard A hazard is a potential source of harm. Substances, events, or circumstances can constitute hazards when their nature would allow them, even just theoretically, to cause damage to health, life, property, or any other interest of value. The probab ...
that can cause loss of vehicle control with damages ranging from a
flat tire A flat tire (British English: flat tyre) is a deflated pneumatic tyre, which can cause the rim of the wheel to ride on the tire tread or the ground potentially resulting in loss of control of the vehicle or irreparable damage to the tire. The mo ...
, vehicular rollover, penetration of the passenger compartment by the debris,"Road Debris Can Be Fatal"
CBS News' ''The Early Show'', Tatiana Morales, July 13, 2004
or
collision In physics, a collision is any event in which two or more bodies exert forces on each other in a relatively short time. Although the most common use of the word ''collision'' refers to incidents in which two or more objects collide with great fo ...
, with accompanying injuries or deaths. In the year 2011, the
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA ) is an agency of the U.S. federal government, part of the Department of Transportation. It describes its mission as "Save lives, prevent injuries, reduce vehicle-related crashes" relat ...
's ''Traffic Safety Facts'' found that more than 800 persons were killed across America by "non-fixed objects" (a term that includes roadway debris).
California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
had the highest number of total deaths for any state, while
New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe, New Mexico, Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque, New Mexico, Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Albuquerque metropolitan area, Tiguex , Offi ...
had the greatest probability for death from a vehicle-debris crash in that year. In 2004, a AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety study revealed that vehicle-related road debris caused 25,000 accidents—and nearly 100 deaths—each year. At highway speeds, even small debris can be deadly. On June 16, 1925, in the United States, a passenger train carrying German and American tourists from Chicago, Illinois to Hoboken, New Jersey struck debris washed into a road crossing and derailed during a heavy thunderstorm. Collision with road debris resulted in a solar vehicle accident at the World Solar Challenge 2007 in Australia. Road debris tends to collect in areas where two-track vehicles such as cars and buses do not drive. In urban areas, this tends to be on the edges (shoulder) and on the crown of the road, and debris frequently collects around
traffic island A traffic island is a solid or painted object in a road that channels traffic. It can also be a narrow strip of island between roads that intersect at an acute angle. If the island uses road markings only, without raised curbs or other physica ...
s and junctions. In rural areas, debris collects in the middle of the lane and on the outside of corners and bends."Road Debris"
British Motorcyclists Federation The British Motorcyclists Federation (BMF) is a motorcycle riders' rights group in the United Kingdom. The BMF was founded in 1960 as the Federation of National One Make Motorcycle Clubs to counter accusations of "leather-jacketed hooligans". It ...
, Christopher Hodder, June 2007
Road debris can be especially dangerous to
bicyclists Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from two ...
, who may have to travel outside the cycle lane and into traffic to avoid debris. Flooding can also occur if storm drains and
street gutter A street gutter is a depression that runs parallel to a road and is designed to collect rainwater that flows along the street diverting it into a storm drain. A gutter alleviates water buildup on a street, allows pedestrians to pass without walki ...
s are not kept clear of road debris and litter. Large quantities of water are sometimes thrown up from the road (road spray) by large vehicles, creating visibility problems for the drivers of oncoming, nearby, or following vehicles. Following vehicles may reduce the problem by slowing and increasing the following/separation distance.
Headlight A headlamp is a lamp attached to the front of a vehicle to illuminate the road ahead. Headlamps are also often called headlights, but in the most precise usage, ''headlamp'' is the term for the device itself and ''headlight'' is the term for ...
s (or fog lights) improve vehicle visibility for all drivers, including those dealing with the spray. Driving manuals advise against following vehicles too closely (
tailgating Tailgating is the action of a driver driving behind another vehicle while not leaving sufficient distance to stop without causing a collision if the vehicle in front stops suddenly. The safe distance for following another vehicle varies depend ...
) in these hazardous conditions. Road spray can cause reduced
visibility The visibility is the measure of the distance at which an object or light can be clearly discerned. In meteorology it depends on the transparency of the surrounding air and as such, it is unchanging no matter the ambient light level or time o ...
and dramatically reduce the safety of motorists."Splash and spray from wet pavements increase safety risks for motorists and are a concern for road authorities."
Australian Asphalt Pavement Association, retrieved 7 March 2010
Over time, road spray and gunk from bicycle'sbrake pads coat the rim of the wheel, interfering with braking power. In
motorsport Motorsport, motorsports or motor sport is a global term used to encompass the group of competitive sporting events which primarily involve the use of motorized vehicles. The terminology can also be used to describe forms of competition of t ...
racing, road debris can cause loss of traction and subsequent crashes. Usually, the yellow
caution flag Racing flags are traditionally used in auto racing and similar motorsports to indicate track condition and to communicate important messages to drivers. Typically, the starter, sometimes the grand marshal of a race, waves the flags atop a flag ...
is used to indicate a track hazard, and the pace/safety car will come out. Road debris can also cause other more specific problems and damage to vehicles. Rocks striking the
catalytic converter A catalytic converter is an exhaust emission control device that converts toxic gases and pollutants in exhaust gas from an internal combustion engine into less-toxic pollutants by catalyzing a redox reaction. Catalytic converters are usual ...
can cause the internal mat to break and clog the converter. Several recalls have occurred due to road debris. The 2005
Scion TC The Scion tC is a compact car manufactured by Toyota under its Scion brand from 2004 to 2016 over two generations: ANT10 (2004–2010) and AGT20 (2010–2016). Both generations were built in Japan. The tC was introduced first in the United States ...
's wind deflector was recalled because of potential shatter from road debris impact. The 2004
Mitsubishi Endeavor The Mitsubishi Endeavor is a mid-size crossover SUV built by Mitsubishi Motors at their manufacturing facility in Normal, Illinois from 2003 until 2011. Based on the PS platform, it was the first vehicle built under Mitsubishi's "Project America ...
was recalled in February 2010 when it was determined that a mixture of
road salt Sodium chloride , commonly known as salt (although sea salt also contains other chemical salts), is an ionic compound with the chemical formula NaCl, representing a 1:1 ratio of sodium and chloride ions. With molar masses of 22.99 and 35.45 g/ ...
and road debris (mud) might be trapped between a reinforcing bracket and the fuel filler pipe, causing corrosion. The 2001
Chevrolet C/K C/K is a series of trucks that was manufactured by General Motors from the 1960 to 2002 model years. Marketed by both the Chevrolet and GMC divisions, the C/K series encompassed a wide range of vehicles. While most commonly associated with pickup ...
chassis cab truck was also recalled on discovery that road debris could strike and damage its
pressure relief valve A relief valve or pressure relief valve (PRV) is a type of safety valve used to control or limit the pressure in a system; pressure might otherwise build up and create a process upset, instrument or equipment failure, or fire. The pressure is re ...
s.


Environmental

Small debris particles and dust (primarily from tire wear and vehicle
exhaust Exhaust, exhaustive, or exhaustion may refer to: Law *Exhaustion of intellectual property rights, limits to intellectual property rights in patent and copyright law ** Exhaustion doctrine, in patent law ** Exhaustion doctrine under U.S. law, in ...
particulates) constitute a significant problem when they are washed into the soil and leak into
groundwater Groundwater is the water present beneath Earth's surface in rock and Pore space in soil, soil pore spaces and in the fractures of stratum, rock formations. About 30 percent of all readily available freshwater in the world is groundwater. A unit ...
reservoirs through
surface runoff Surface runoff (also known as overland flow) is the flow of water occurring on the ground surface when excess rainwater, stormwater, meltwater, or other sources, can no longer sufficiently rapidly infiltrate in the soil. This can occur when t ...
, especially
urban runoff Urban runoff is surface runoff of rainwater, landscape irrigation, and car washing created by urbanization. Impervious surfaces (roads, parking lots and sidewalks) are constructed during land development. During rain , storms and other precip ...
. Roadside
soil Soil, also commonly referred to as earth or dirt, is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, liquids, and organisms that together support life. Some scientific definitions distinguish ''dirt'' from ''soil'' by restricting the former ...
and water contamination can result when the concentration of harmful constituents is high enough. The greater the
surface area The surface area of a solid object is a measure of the total area that the surface of the object occupies. The mathematical definition of surface area in the presence of curved surfaces is considerably more involved than the definition of ...
of
synthetic rubber A synthetic rubber is an artificial elastomer. They are polymers synthesized from petroleum byproducts. About 32-million metric tons of rubbers are produced annually in the United States, and of that amount two thirds are synthetic. Synthetic rubb ...
waste Waste (or wastes) are unwanted or unusable materials. Waste is any substance discarded after primary use, or is worthless, defective and of no use. A by-product, by contrast is a joint product of relatively minor economic value. A waste pr ...
fragments, the greater the potential for breakdown into harmful constituents. For leached tire debris, the potential
environmental impact Environmental issues are effects of human activity on the biophysical environment, most often of which are harmful effects that cause environmental degradation. Environmental protection is the practice of protecting the natural environment on t ...
of the ingredients
zinc Zinc is a chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. Zinc is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a shiny-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodi ...
and organic
toxicant A toxicant is any toxic substance, whether man-made or naturally occurring. By contrast, a toxin is a poison produced naturally by an organism (e.g. plant, animal, insect). The different types of toxicants can be found in the air, soil, water, or ...
s has been demonstrated. Additionally, debris from lawns in local communities can flush into local waterways. There are currently some laws against blowing organic matter such as grass clippings into the roadway because of their potential toxic effect on the local waterways. Grass being high in nitrogen, which can accumulate in waterways and cause algae blooms. An example of such laws can be seen in the City of Davenport, Iowa's Clean Air and Water Act.


Prevention

A
car bra A front-end bra (also known by other terms such as car bra, bonnet bra, front-end cover, hood bra, auto bra,"bra." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (February 9, 2010). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999- ...
can help reduce damage from minor road debris. Road spray is lessened on
stone mastic asphalt Stone mastic asphalt (SMA), also called stone-matrix asphalt, was developed in Germany in the 1960s with the first SMA pavements being placed in 1968 near Kiel. It provides a deformation-resistant, durable surfacing material, suitable for heavily t ...
and open-graded asphalt and can be further reduced with fenders (more so on a bicycle since most motor vehicles tend to already have fenders) and/or
mud flap A MUD (; originally multi-user dungeon, with later variants multi-user dimension and multi-user domain) is a multiplayer real-time virtual world, usually text-based or storyboarded. MUDs combine elements of role-playing games, hack and slash ...
s.
Street sweeper A street sweeper or street cleaner may refer to a person's occupation or to a machine that cleans streets. Street sweepers have been employed in cities as "sanitation workers" since sanitation and waste removal became a priority. A stre ...
s and
winter service vehicle A winter service vehicle (WSV), or snow removal vehicle, is a vehicle specially designed or adapted to clear thoroughfares of ice and snow. Winter service vehicles are usually based on a dump truck chassis, with adaptations allowing them to carr ...
s remove most solid road debris and the
Adopt a Highway The Adopt-a-Highway program, and the very similar Sponsor-a-Highway, are promotional campaigns undertaken by U.S. states, provinces and territories of Canada, and some national governments outside North America to encourage volunteers to keep ...
program also helps.
Road sign Traffic signs or road signs are signs erected at the side of or above roads to give instructions or provide information to road users. The earliest signs were simple wooden or stone milestones. Later, signs with directional arms were introduce ...
s and variable-message signs may warn drivers of special situations involving road debris. The
American Automobile Association American Automobile Association (AAA – commonly pronounced as "Triple A") is a federation of motor clubs throughout North America. AAA is a privately held not-for-profit national member association and service organization with over 60 m ...
(AAA) publishes the following recommendations:''''


Education

* Motor vehicle operators should know and understand how to secure their loads, load securement requirements, littering laws, and penalties for failing to comply with the regulations. * Drivers carrying loads should periodically inspect their vehicles and cargo to make sure they remain safe and secure. * All drivers should be aware of the surroundings and continuously inspect the road for potential hazards. * Drivers should immediately report unsafe vehicles and unsecured loads.


Laws and policy enforcement

* Governments should enact and enforce
legislation Legislation is the process or result of enrolling, enacting, or promulgating laws by a legislature, parliament, or analogous governing body. Before an item of legislation becomes law it may be known as a bill, and may be broadly referred to ...
requiring loads to be covered, or use anti-littering legislation to penalize offenders. * Fines and demerit points for unsecured loads should be increased. * Road debris incidents and crashes should be made an absolute-liability offense.


Removal and mitigation

* Maintenance organizations should perform regular road inspection and timely removal of debris. * Better roadway design provides adequate visibility of stationary objects in the roadway to motorists traveling at highway speeds. * Increasing the dispersion of
Traffic cone Traffic cones, also called pylons, witches' hats, road cones, highway cones, safety cones, channelizing devices, construction cones, or just cones, are usually cone-shaped markers that are placed on roads or footpaths to temporarily redirect tra ...
s around roadway areas.


Popular culture

Ocean Colour Scene Ocean Colour Scene (often abbreviated to OCS) are an English rock band formed in Solihull in 1989. They have had five top 10 albums including a number one in 1997. They have also achieved seventeen top 40 singles and six top 10 singles to dat ...
, an English Britpop band, made a song about
Birmingham, England Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...
called "Debris Road" (reputed to be about the road running past the band's recording studios in
Ladywood Ladywood is an inner-city district next to central Birmingham. Historically in Warwickshire, in June 2004, Birmingham City Council conducted a citywide "Ward Boundary Revision" to round-up the thirty-nine Birmingham wards to forty. As a result o ...
) on their '' Marchin' Already'' 1997 album. Some
video games Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This feedbac ...
(particularly
racing games Racing games are a video game genre in which the player participates in a racing competition. They may be based on anything from real-world racing leagues to fantastical settings. They are distributed along a spectrum between more realistic rac ...
) include road debris that damages vehicles or obstructs visibility.Ridin’ Dirty: A new game harnesses the PS3 for serious mudslinging.
''
Wired ''Wired'' (stylized as ''WIRED'') is a monthly American magazine, published in print and online editions, that focuses on how emerging technologies affect culture, the economy, and politics. Owned by Condé Nast, it is headquartered in San ...
'' 15.04, March 2007, retrieved 5 April 2010
''
Spy Hunter Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence) from non-disclosed sources or divulging of the same without the permission of the holder of the information for a tangib ...
'' (1983) features slippery, icy roads and puddles,
oil slick An oil spill is the release of a liquid petroleum hydrocarbon into the environment, especially the marine ecosystem, due to human activity, and is a form of pollution. The term is usually given to marine oil spills, where oil is released into th ...
s, and
smoke screen A smoke screen is smoke released to mask the movement or location of military units such as infantry, tanks, aircraft, or ships. Smoke screens are commonly deployed either by a canister (such as a grenade) or generated by a vehicle (such as ...
s. '' MotorStorm'' (2007) depicts air-borne mud that becomes accurately painted onto the body of each vehicle in real-time. Players can use this airborne debris strategically: a chunk of debris may be used to knock opponents off their motorcycles, and mud spatter on the wind-shields might temporarily blind them. ''
Fuel A fuel is any material that can be made to react with other substances so that it releases energy as thermal energy or to be used for work. The concept was originally applied solely to those materials capable of releasing chemical energy b ...
'' (2009) features "crazy windstorms that kick up leaves and debris."Fuel Off-Road Video Game Review
Josh Burns, off-road.com, 1 July 2009


See also

*
Estray Estray, in law, is any domestic animal found wandering at large or lost, particularly if the owner is unknown. In most cases this includes domesticated animals and not pets. Under early English common law, estrays were forfeited to the king or lo ...
*
Litter Litter consists of waste products that have been discarded incorrectly, without consent, at an unsuitable location. Litter can also be used as a verb; to litter means to drop and leave objects, often man-made, such as aluminum cans, paper cups ...
*
Road slipperiness Road slipperiness is a condition of low skid resistance due to insufficient road friction. It is a result of snow, ice, water, loose material and the texture of the road surface on the traction produced by the wheels of a vehicle. Road slipperi ...
*
Roadkill Roadkill is an animal or animals that have been struck and killed by drivers of motor vehicles on highways. Wildlife-vehicle collisions (WVC) have increasingly been the topic of academic research to understand the causes, and how it can be ...
*
Storm drain A storm drain, storm sewer (United Kingdom, U.S. and Canada), surface water drain/sewer (United Kingdom), or stormwater drain (Australia and New Zealand) is infrastructure designed to drain excess rain and ground water from impervious surfa ...
*
Street cleaning A street sweeper or street cleaner may refer to a person's occupation or to a machine that cleans streets. Street sweepers have been employed in cities as "sanitation workers" since sanitation and waste removal became a priority. A str ...
*
Street gutter A street gutter is a depression that runs parallel to a road and is designed to collect rainwater that flows along the street diverting it into a storm drain. A gutter alleviates water buildup on a street, allows pedestrians to pass without walki ...


References


External links

{{Road types Road safety Road hazards Articles containing video clips Litter