KazAvtoZhol, the national road operator, has released a video highlighting one of the main threats to Kazakhstan's road surfaces: overloaded trucks, according to infohub.kz.
Earlier, KazAvtoZhol reported that heavy trucks were damaging the new highway in the Abai region, specifically the Taldykorgan-Kalbatau-Oskemen road of national significance. Now, the company has decided to visually demonstrate those who directly endanger road conditions.
The footage shows trucks leaving a quarry with beds full of construction materials, and as they approach an automated weighing station (AWS), they veer off the roadway onto the shoulder to bypass the weight control system.
"These trucks are overloaded. And they are among the main enemies of asphalt. Heavy vehicles destroy the road surface, accelerating the appearance of cracks, ruts, and deformations," KazAvtoZhol noted.
The company emphasized that AWS is not an obstacle to business or an attempt to restrict freight transport, but a tool to protect roads built, among other things, with state funds.
"The consequences of increased load on this highway are already being addressed. In a short period, repair work has covered more than 10,000 square meters of asphalt concrete pavement. One of the main causes of damage is the movement of overloaded vehicles. But by bypassing AWS along the shoulder, trucks also put additional stress on road elements not designed for systematic multi-ton traffic," the organization explained.
KazAvtoZhol appealed to quarry owners, freight carriers, and organizations using such vehicles to refrain from seeking ways to bypass control and instead comply with weight and axle load regulations.
"The country needs new roads, infrastructure projects, and a thriving business. But progress in one area should not come at the expense of prematurely destroying another," the statement reads.