The extended spell of hot weather in Dunedin over the past couple of weeks has played havoc with the seal on a few of the city's roads.
Dunedin City Council roading projects engineer Evan Matheson said a combination of hot weather and problems with the way the bitumen was laid were to blame for the seal being stripped by vehicles on the four affected roads.
The roads affected were Rattray St, Balmacewen Rd, Easther Cres, which would be fixed over the next month, and Moray Pl, which had already been fixed.
The long spell of warm weather sped up the rate at which the bitumen would normally deteriorate.
Construction problems were usual on a few roads, but in normal conditions the bitumen could still be expected to last two to three years.
Without construction problems bitumen could be expected to last eight to 10 years before the road needed to be resealed.
The council would most likely address the issue by removing the bitumen from the roads and replacing it with more expensive asphalt.
Mr Matheson said Dunedin was not the only place which had encountered problems with its roads due to the heat.
''With this extended spell of hot weather I think every road controlling authority in the lower South Island has been having problems of one form or another.''
In general, roads in Dunedin were more susceptible to damage from heat than places with warmer climates because the bitumen used had to be able to withstand cold.
''We have a got a bitumen that can handle our winters, but the flip side is that if we get extended periods of warm weather then that bitumen just goes a little bit soft.''
