The importance of road markings

Whether it's a supercar battling it out on Panorama Mountain or a family escaping the highway for the weekend, consider the role of the unassuming white lines that guide our journey and keep us safe on the road.

Without road markings, our roads would just become confusing. Those reflective white, continuous or dashed bands sprayed on the road mark lane separations, identify general road rules such as "stop" and "yield" and help pedestrians cross traffic safely.

They guide our paths, keep us safe, and are so ubiquitous that we rarely think about them. ...... But did you know that those familiar longitudinal markings must undergo rigorous testing to ensure that they can withstand constant traffic stress and changing weather conditions and still function properly?

The effectiveness of road markings in improving the safety of road users depends on the clear visibility of the markings. This becomes particularly important when there is insufficient light, such as in fog, rain or at night. Since the visibility of road markings is a key factor in ensuring traffic safety, strict performance requirements have been introduced to ensure the effectiveness of road markings, which must be regularly inspected and maintained.

An important feature of road markings is the quality of reflection that contributes to night driving. This is achieved by adding tiny reflective glass beads to the paint after it has been laid and is still sticky. Compared to other paints, the marking paint dries very quickly. In addition to preventing the beads from sinking, this feature also improves the efficiency of the road marking. The faster the paint dries, the faster a section of road can be marked or re-marked, and the less time there is for traffic to be interrupted.

The principle of glass beads is that they provide a reflective material embedded in the paint, similar to that found in cat eyes on the road. There are different grades of glass beads for different applications. The beads themselves are small and similar in appearance and texture to clear white sand, as sand comes in various sizes and grades. These grades determine their suitability, and although they may look similar up close, glass beads offer different reflectivity, durability and compliance values.

Road Marking Glass Beads play an important role in road safety and in optimizing the use of road space. They help provide information that cannot be easily conveyed using mounted signs. In addition, signs applied directly to the road surface provide a continuous form of information delivery that can be observed when edge-mounted signs are hidden.

Road markings are an essential safety feature. Glass beads significantly increase the reflectivity of the paint on the road, thus significantly improving their visibility and thus the safety of drivers and pedestrians.

The only road marking additive that causes retroreflection is the glass bead, which reflects more of the headlight beam back to the driver. As a result, glass beads make road markings appear five times brighter at night compared to road markings without glass beads.