New cash will ease pothole problem

Extra $65M proposed for arterial roads

Edmonton drivers could be in for long-term pothole relief under a proposal Thursday to put up to $65 million annually into maintaining arterial roads.

The plan would see spending on commuter routes jump sharply starting in 2015 from this year’s $21 million to keep the pavement in good condition and reduce the backlog of roads that need work.

“If we don’t continue to make the investment, we will fall behind,” transportation general manager Bob Boutilier said.

“Potholes are like the common cold. You can’t get rid of it. You have to live with it.”

So far this year, crews have filled more than 320,000 potholes.

Boutilier expects the total could hit 500,000, more than normal, but said the proposed rehabilitation plan will eventually ease a problem made worse this year by the cold, snowy spring.

Even the next few months should be better than expected after council pumped an extra $12 million into arterial road repair this month and approved an additional $9 million to fix residential streets.

“Right now, just because of the fact that we have ourselves in gear with potholes, and grinding and paving, this summer … people will immediately see a change,” Boutilier said.

“Having that long-term support for an arterial program, much like we do for a neighbourhood program, means we can … get the best prices and organize it so we don’t screw up the entire city.”

The additional money could come from property taxes, the rising federal fuel tax, provincial fuel taxes and redirecting money from other transportation projects, according to a report councillors will discuss Wednesday.

If the arterial road rehabilitation budget hits $65 million by 2018, the city could meet its target the following year of reducing the number of roads in low-fair condition to 10 per cent of the total network from the current 18 per cent.

The process would start with preventive maintenance, such as sealing cracks, before graduating to more expensive “mill and fill” — shaving off sections of crumbling asphalt and repaving — in worse areas.

At least one arterial in such bad condition it needs total reconstruction would be done annually until they’ve all been fixed.

Boutilier doesn’t want to see these important routes deteriorate into the same “war zones” that existed on 30 or 40 “horrible” community streets before the neighbourhood rehabilitation program started in 2008. That program has seen almost half of Edmonton’s 300 neighbourhoods rise to good condition from slightly more than one-third five years ago, although more than half still require rehabilitation or total reconstruction.

The bright spot is that Boutilier feels spending on thoroughfares might ease off once the current problems are repaired, because they usually involve old roads and new ones are built better.