DOI investigates surface water issue on Mountain Road

Resolving issue is 'critical to ensuring the safety and viability of the TT'

The Department of Infrastructure says resolving a surface water issue on the Mountain Road is 'critical to ensuring the safety and viability' of the upcoming TT races.

It's confirmed the issue has been discovered at Brandywell Corner where resurfacing work took place earlier this month, after a private contractor spilled a type of adhesive on the route.

It says, 'at the time of resurfacing, no issues were apparent', but that 'earlier this week, surface water began to emanate from the corner of the newly-resurfaced area, spreading across the full width of the carriageway'.

In response, the road was temporarily closed on Wednesday evening to allow for minor surface repairs aimed at stemming the water seepage. 

It says that 'unfortunately, these initial repairs have not resolved the issue, and water continues to leak across the carriageway'.

The DOI says the situation is being 'closely monitored', and it has been 'in active discussions with TT race organiser, ACU Events Ltd'. 

Its safety officer has inspected the site and confirmed that resolving the issue is critical to ensuring the safety and viability of the upcoming races.

As a result of the issue, today's closure of the Mountain Road (23 May) is expected to be extended beyond 4:30pm as a team works to plane out a small section of the road surface to determine the root cause and full extent of the problem.

Once this assessment is complete, a 'more substantial repair will be undertaken'.

The Department of Infrastructure is also installing signage on the route ahead of the implementation of the one-way system later today.