A Little about Potholes
and winter
By Albert B. Kelly
If you know nothing else
about this winter season; the snow, the bitter cold, the filth caked on your car; you would know it was a bad winter
simply by the size and depth of the potholes dotting most major roads and more
than a few secondary roads throughout the region.
I point that because I’ve
gotten more than a few calls about the potholes on N. Pearl Street. As someone
who travels that road on a daily basis, I know the frustration drivers feel,
especially near the train overpass, trying to avoid potholes large enough to
blowout tires, destroy suspensions, and possibly rent out as one-bedroom
apartments. The good news is that if you are reading this; it is likely that at
least some temporary filling was done by the DOT in the past several days, so
that’s something.
That said, like almost
anything involving government, there are layers and jurisdictions and areas of
responsibility spread out among federal, state, county, and municipal units of
government and this is really the deciding factor in determining who is
responsible for repairing what. For example, N. Pearl Street is a state highway
(State Highway 77) and as such, it falls under the jurisdiction of the State of
New Jersey, as does Broad Street (Route 49)-the main arteries in and out of our
community.
Beyond State highways,
many roads through Bridgeton fall under the responsibility of the county
including; Grove St, Southeast Ave, Burlington Rd, Irving Ave, West Ave,
Commerce St, Fayette St, Mayor Aitkin Drive, and Laurel Street to name a few.
In all, the County oversees approximately 42 lane miles of road in the City of
Bridgeton.
Fortunately, our Public
Works people have a solid working relationship with their counterparts on the
County level and we’re able to handle things in a coordinated way. With the
State though, being a much larger entity, it’s easy to get lost in the mix. We
contact the State Department of Transportation on multiple occasions about
filling potholes or cutting grass on certain traffic islands; but generally the
response is that we’re on a list along with everyone else. I’m mindful of the
huge number of miles the State is responsible for, but that does not help when
you’re nearly swallowed up by a pothole.
However, understanding
that multiple roads within a community may be the responsibility of multiple
units of government will at least help to clarify why the local road department
does not simply go out and do a repair within the borders of their own
community. Simply put, our Department of Public Works is prohibited from
repairing a road that is under the jurisdiction of the state or county.
Along those lines, I’ve
often thought that if the number of roadways throughout New Jersey is more than
the DOT can handle in a bad season such as the one we are having, perhaps the
legislature might consider a bill whereby the state could authorize and
reimburse costs to municipalities for undertaking temporary filling of potholes
on a emergent basis simply to protect the safety of motorists in their
respective communities. It is a temporary fix to be sure, but then so is the
patch that would fill the hole in the first place.
All of that is to say that
some roads are the responsibility of the City, while others belong to the
county or the state. As we speak, even the secondary roads are showing unusual
strain this winter. Because of this, our Streets and Roads Department is making
every effort to ensure potholes are filled on roads the City is responsible
for, but this too is a bit of a challenge.
Anything that gets done at
this point is simply a quick temporary fix. With cold temps, rain and snow, the
best they can do is fill these holes with some patch, tamp it down, and hope it
holds until the weather breaks in spring and more permanent repairs can be
done. Over the past week, catching a few breaks of sun, they’ve been out on a
mad dash to fill existing potholes to get us through the rest of the season. If
you are aware of a pothole on a City street, please contact our Department of
Public Works at 455-3230 Ext 279 so they can deal with it, understanding that
they can only do so as weather permits.
For any potholes on N.
Pearl Street (Route 77) or Broad Street (Route 49), you can contact the State
Department of Transportation at (856) 486-6608. For roads under County
jurisdiction such as Grove St, Southeast Ave, Burlington Rd, Irving Ave, West
Ave, Commerce St, Fayette St, Mayor Aitkin Drive, and Laurel Street; you can
report a pothole to the County at 453-2192.
Beyond potholes, I would
just ask residents to the extent that they can do so safely- to please keep
sidewalks clear in front of their homes and residences. Business need to do the
same. It’s not always easy and some folks physically can’t be outdoors
shoveling for health reasons; but keeping sidewalks clear allows people to move
about safely and that’s important; it’s also part of our statutes.
Please check on your
neighbors, especially the elderly, to make sure they are alright and if you can
assist them, it’s a kind thing to do and it makes us a better community. Winter
can be a hard and trying time and it can also be costly as well. But as we roll
into the fat part of February, we’re almost in the home stretch and soon enough
we’ll be sniffing the first signs of spring in the air and that’s always a
beautiful thing. So hang in there, the winter of 2013-2014 is almost a memory.