Councillors seek answers to pot hole season questions

With the damage from freezing and thawing making itself known on County roads this spring, councillors have requested access to all information about roads, their needs, and their rank on the repair lists so they can properly answer constituents questions.

The mayor and many councillors have been driving the County’s 1,100 kilometres of roads in recent weeks in response to conversations, calls and emails about poor road conditions.

At Thursday’s Committee of the Whole meeting, they asked for the grading list that rates roads from 1-10 (one being worst) and helps determine which roads get fixed first. That is included on a thumb drive containing a massive Roads Needs Study from 2014. Some work was done last year to begin updating that study.

Councillors would also like to have a conversation about whether a return to some gravel roads would be an option.

Neil Carbone, director of community development and strategic initiatives, said much of the information they are looking for will come forward in the production this year of the new asset management plan document as required by the provincial government. That plan is to help municipalities to know costs of building, operating, maintaining, renewing, replacing and disposing of its various infrastructure, and to view a long-term perspective on all assets.

The roads concerns came forward with the municipality’s Operational Services Department seeking a $988,841 one-year contract extension option for Miller Paving for the supply, delivery and application of surface treatment.

Viewing the list of roads to be completed this year, more concerns were raised about pot-hole filled Closson Road not being on the list.

That road has been moved to engineering for a request for capital construction as its needs were determined to be beyond just filling pot holes.

Councillor Ernie Margetson is looking forward to having all the background to be better informed when the public calls.

“People have been telling me Closson Road has been on the list for five years and now it’s a 2022 reconstruction,” he said. “It’s pretty hard to defend that type of cost and throwing it another year or two ahead. It’s important for all of us to have the discussion and that we’re making sure we’re spending the dollars in the best place and doing the best job we can.”

Councillor Bill Roberts said he couldn’t count the number of times work on Closson has been promised robust rehabilitation over the years.

“We all have roads that have been promised,” said Councillor Jamie Forrester. “Plenty of them. Not just Closson.”

Councillor Kate McNaughton wants to the see the ‘triage’ list of roads from engineering.

Carbone noted a full roads list for capital was included in the 2019 budget binder.

Councillor Janice Maynard expressed concerns about severe deterioration of some portions of roads and asked if emergency plans were in place.

Pat Heffernan, Acting Director of Operations, said he has not been advised of any emergency repairs on County roads, but confirmed there are areas that have a lot of coal patching to be done due to the extent of freeze and thaw this year.

Meanwhile, a tender award for $1,090,037 will move forward for council’s approval April 9, to purchase four new 4×6 wheel drive sander/plow/dump trucks. The tender would be awarded to Tallman Truck Centre and is below the $1,160,000 budgeted.

They replace a 2001 model year truck; move two 2004 and 2005 vehicles into back up positions and assist with better coverage of snow plowing routes as the County works toward taking over plowing.

One route, Heffernan explained, currently takes 12 hours to complete and with a new truck in rotation, would turn it into a six-hour return route, allowing two plow routes per shift.