Concentrations of platinum in the <63-mu m fraction of some Swedish road sediments have been shown to increase from 3.0 ng g(-1) in 1984 to 8.9 ng g(-1) in 1991. Road sediments contained 39-88% more Pt than gullypot sediments and sequential extraction showed a distinct shift from predominantly inorganic Pt on the road surface to wholly organic Pt in the gullypot. Dissolved Pt concentrations in disturbed gullypot liquor were within the range 1.7 ng l(-1) to 3.8 ng l(-1) and are explained by bacterial action in the gullypot sediment mobilizing organically bound dissolved Pt forms.