The Road Surface Treatments Association (RSTA) is reminding members to advise their customers that using grit dust on the roads during high temperatures can help keep the road network from melting excessively.

The dust, which can be applied through gritters, should be a 3mm down of granite or equivalent material and not salt as suggested by one national newspaper last week, which should never be used as it will be ineffective in these conditions.

When the dust is put on the network, it helps stops excess bleeding onto the surface and makes the lively bitumen inert. This should be done as temperatures reach their maximum-so from midday onwards.

Keith Brett, Chair of the RSTA and Contracts Director at Kiely Bros said: “In light of the high temperatures expected this week and in later summer, we wanted to advise our members and local authorities the risk of melting roads and the safest way to deal with them.”

Several weather forecasts have predicted 10 days or more of continued high temperatures, with some days reaching as high as 40C in some parts of the country.