Use of metal track on civil airfields

Looking the the online archives of flight magazine I found an article on the possible use of Gatwick as another airfield for London dated 1950 (Did that go ahead????). The thing that interested me was that it stated the runways as 2 metal tracked and one grass.
Now I have never considered the use of metal track (whatever the type) on civil airfields postwar. I always assumed it was taken up after the war.
Gatwick obviously kept its track, although how it lasted 5 years after the war I couldn't guess.
Does anyone know if this was common or was Gatwick a single example?

Peter

Me, confused? Well, yes but that's another story.

The text from January 1950 Flight is as follows :-

Three runways are provided, two being covered with steel mesh; the other is a grass strip. The dimensions are 1,400yd in the S.W.-N.E. direction and 1,200yd in the E.W. and S.E.-N.W. directions.

Apologies I should have used the terminology in the original text.

Peter

The artificial runways in the UK were either of these:

PSP = Pierced Steel Planking

Sommerfeld Track (not Sommerfield)

Channel Track

PBS = Prefabricated Bitumen Surfacing

Bar and Rod Track

Army Track

SMT = Square Mesh Track (BRC Track)

Irving Grid

Not necessarily used at Civil Airports Mawganmad