How do abrasive blades help make concrete runways and highways less slippery?

Abrasive blades help make concrete runways and highways safer by cutting grooves into the surface, a process specifically designed to reduce wet-weather skidding accidents.1

These blades feature a metal center with segments containing diamond abrasives, which are hard enough to cut through concrete efficiently. By creating these grooves, the texture of the pavement is altered to increase surface roughness. According to the principles of static friction, increasing the roughness of a surface helps improve traction, thereby preventing vehicles from sliding on wet surfaces.12