Neglecting road maintenance is a threat to safety and competitiveness
The road is a game board on which things happen all the time, and the events affect the occupational safety of every professional driver. The person behind the wheel is faced with constant decisions – decisions related to challenges caused by driving conditions, weight restrictions and grooves on the road surface, among other things.
In addition to occupational safety, the condition of the roads is a and o also in terms of competitiveness, and not only the competitiveness of the transport companies themselves, but to the greatest extent also of the customers who use the transport services.
Transportation is always related to derived demand, i.e. cars only move because of the customer's needs. Every minute spent on the road and every liter of fuel costs - including the extra ones spent on the journey due to bad roads. All costs are ultimately included in the customer's final bill. So it is at least justified to remind that the condition of roads has a very big impact on the competitiveness of Finnish business life.
Both competitiveness and occupational safety are put to the test in a situation where poor roads weaken the durability of the rolling stock. For example, the rapid fatigue of vehicle platforms and tires cause financial challenges for entrepreneurs in the transport industry. Above all, however, they cause additional risks for drivers. Worn vehicle structures and rutted, broken asphalt is a combination that can cause serious accidents. When hitting a groove or depression, a tall vehicle can even topple over. Drivers are required to be careful, but at the same time speed and seamless transport.
It is clear that road maintenance must be prioritized and that there are roads that need to be taken care of at the expense of the lower grade road network. However, Finland still relies heavily on the chimney industry, and many large production plants, as well as forests and farms, are often located along the lower-level road network. From there, the raw materials for innumerable products, which either indirectly or directly employ a considerable number of Finns at many different levels, are transported. Even though complete equality between road networks of different degrees cannot be achieved, there is no road system that can be completely forgotten.
At the moment, the eyes should be focused on the asphalt. The price of crude oil is low and as a result the price of bitumen is also cheap. A year from now, the situation may be completely different, so right now would be the right time to invest in high-quality asphalting work. And the emphasis is specifically on quality: for example, road pavements in Germany are 2–2½ times thicker than in Finland. The issue is increasingly important, as the mass of heavy equipment increases significantly with super trucks. Once a thicker coating is made, its service life will be extended considerably. In this case, pointless snooping and petty theft are exactly the same thing!
On the map of Europe, Finland ranks below the average in terms of road maintenance. According to a recent study, Swedes invest 2½ times the amount of money in road maintenance compared to Finland. In Norway, a multi-year plan for putting the roads in order has been drawn up. Also in the new EU member states, a lot is invested in the transport infrastructure; in these countries it has been understood that the condition of the roads raises the standard of living and well-being of the nation as a whole. Of course, glimmers of light are also visible in Finland - the parliamentary debt repair working group has unanimously decided that in the coming years, significantly more money will be invested in infrastructure maintenance than at present. However, the elections that are just around the corner will decide how tightly this decision is adhered to.
Teppo Mikkola
SKAL association, chairman
entrepreneur in the transport industry
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