Recently, I concluded that somewhere over the years we stopped engineering roads and settled for roadways that are cousins to obstacle courses. Potholes, which are the least of the problem, are an issue because the roads don’t have a concrete base. We are paving dirt.

Every day we are taking a risk getting on the “road” as we navigate various obstacles: manholes that are higher or lower than the rest of the road; collapsed speed bumps; ditches dug by utility companies that are not refilled; poor drainage that causes flooding; and a lack of markings, guardrails, or safety lighting. I have already spent $1,000 this year to repair my jeep’s suspension, and I know I am not alone.

It is budget season again, and a road improvement project over the next three years needs to be planned to get the paved “horse tracks” up to standard. Utility companies need to be required to fix the manholes as a start. Please and thank you!

 

Maintenance

The second important action is maintenance. Adequate funds need to be budgeted every year to ensure drains are cleaned (some are too small in the first place and are easily blocked by mud, so that is a design issue) and not overgrown with bush. Potholes should be repaired and not built up to a bump. Let’s stop doing the same thing and expecting different results.

By the way, I’m curious to know the end date on the sidewalk project in front the Government House on Waterfront Drive? If we can’t get a simple project done, we are in more trouble than we are willing to admit.