I have to replace my tires every 60 000-100 000 KM as the tires wear down and the rubber comes off as I drive. If this is happening with all cars, why arnt the roads coated in rubber? Is somebody cleaning the tire rubber off the road? Is it getting washed away from the rain and into drains/the ocean? How long does it take for rubber to degrade that has come off the tire?
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It’s a bit easier to see what’s going on with tyre rubber in F1, since those tyres last ~100km rather than 100,000km. In F1, some rubber gets worked into the road surface and improves grip, however this is easily washed away with rain. Side note, this means that rain the night before a race can lead to an interesting race as the track “rubbers in” and gains traction over the course of the race.
However most of the rubber is lost as chunks which are known as [marbles](https://i.imgur.com/TbH5lNF.jpeg). In your car, this still happens, just on a dramatically slower/smaller scale. microscopic pieces of rubber breaking off and blowing away over time
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