Roads better or worse in your state?
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tcreeley
Elite Member
Roads are pretty lousy up here- state roads, town roads, interstate. The interstate frequently gets tire grooves. State roads have frost heaves, broken pavement, pot-holes. Sometimes the fill the holes with gravel, sometimes they use cold patch. When they re pave our state road - they lay down a 1/4" to 1/2" skimcoat of new asphalt and paint that up really nicely with plastic reflectors down the middle. That 1st winter it is breaking up again.
The problem I see is that the state skimps on the road base foundation. They don't use rock for good drainage as a base, but gravel and sand. The gravel is loaded with clay. It is not very thick and it is the same through wet areas or dry areas. Sometimes they will just add 8" of gravel ontop of the highway and pave over that. That heaves too. It is all about saving a buck. All of the road improvement is done through bonds- legislature never saves for road repair, and is unwilling to spend money it might have on hand. One year we lowered 400 million dollars worth of taxes and then a couple years later took out a bunch of bonds for roads- to be payed back with interest.
They try to fix up tourist roads a bit, but not much. Unless it is the interstate, none of the roads are banked for curves. Up here- you just bounce along and go fast, and keep a light hand on the wheel.
The problem I see is that the state skimps on the road base foundation. They don't use rock for good drainage as a base, but gravel and sand. The gravel is loaded with clay. It is not very thick and it is the same through wet areas or dry areas. Sometimes they will just add 8" of gravel ontop of the highway and pave over that. That heaves too. It is all about saving a buck. All of the road improvement is done through bonds- legislature never saves for road repair, and is unwilling to spend money it might have on hand. One year we lowered 400 million dollars worth of taxes and then a couple years later took out a bunch of bonds for roads- to be payed back with interest.
They try to fix up tourist roads a bit, but not much. Unless it is the interstate, none of the roads are banked for curves. Up here- you just bounce along and go fast, and keep a light hand on the wheel.
tcreeley
Elite Member
Roads are pretty lousy up here- state roads, town roads, interstate. The interstate frequently gets tire grooves. State roads have frost heaves, broken pavement, pot-holes. Sometimes they fill the holes with gravel, sometimes they use cold patch. When they re pave our state road - they lay down a 1/4" to 1/2" skimcoat of new asphalt and paint that up really nicely with plastic reflectors down the middle. That 1st winter it is breaking up again.
The problem I see is that the state skimps on the road base foundation. They don't use rock for good drainage as a base, but gravel and sand. The gravel is loaded with clay. It is not very thick and it is the same through wet areas or dry areas. Sometimes they will just add 8" of gravel ontop of the highway and pave over that. That heaves too. It is all about saving a buck. All of the road improvement is done through bonds- legislature never saves for road repair, and is unwilling to spend money it might have on hand. One year we lowered 400 million dollars worth of taxes and then a couple years later took out a bunch of bonds for roads- to be payed back with interest.
They try to fix up tourist roads a bit, but not much. Unless it is the interstate, none of the roads are banked for curves. Up here- you just bounce along and go fast, and keep a light hand on the wheel.
The problem I see is that the state skimps on the road base foundation. They don't use rock for good drainage as a base, but gravel and sand. The gravel is loaded with clay. It is not very thick and it is the same through wet areas or dry areas. Sometimes they will just add 8" of gravel ontop of the highway and pave over that. That heaves too. It is all about saving a buck. All of the road improvement is done through bonds- legislature never saves for road repair, and is unwilling to spend money it might have on hand. One year we lowered 400 million dollars worth of taxes and then a couple years later took out a bunch of bonds for roads- to be payed back with interest.
They try to fix up tourist roads a bit, but not much. Unless it is the interstate, none of the roads are banked for curves. Up here- you just bounce along and go fast, and keep a light hand on the wheel.
jinman
Rest in Peace
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I will qualify my statement to say that improvements vary from county to county here. While many counties have improved roads, others have few mineral resources and suffer from the lack of revenue. While Wise County paved my road this last year, the Montague county end is full of muddy potholes. Yet, somehow the funds were available to completely resurfaced the concrete on Hwy 287 as the county roads suffered. Money is being spent, but not on the roads that really need it. It may not be the county's fault, but it does seem to be a problem. There have been many state highways and farm to market roads resurfaced this last year, but not the county roads.
newbury
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I frequent several states -
In northern Virginia we pay fairly heavy taxes, the old roads are being fixed and lot's of new ones built. But they must be all "low bid". Some new roads and most patches last less than 5 years before they start breaking up. So it's almost a constant state of minor disrepair.
In Mississippi they have rebuilt several of the main roads in my area and are building a few more. I think the rebuild process is financed by tire dealers. They take off most of the top layer of asphalt and leave the road grooved for a couple of years before they finally come in and put the topcoat on. It tears up the tires quickly. Sort of "strip, weather, reseal". Most of the secondary roads we have to rely on using Volkswagen Beatles to fill potholes, Fiat 500's are a little to small.
I've seen in other states where they have the repaving equipment a couple of miles behind the stripping crew and it gets paved the next day.
In northern Virginia we pay fairly heavy taxes, the old roads are being fixed and lot's of new ones built. But they must be all "low bid". Some new roads and most patches last less than 5 years before they start breaking up. So it's almost a constant state of minor disrepair.
In Mississippi they have rebuilt several of the main roads in my area and are building a few more. I think the rebuild process is financed by tire dealers. They take off most of the top layer of asphalt and leave the road grooved for a couple of years before they finally come in and put the topcoat on. It tears up the tires quickly. Sort of "strip, weather, reseal". Most of the secondary roads we have to rely on using Volkswagen Beatles to fill potholes, Fiat 500's are a little to small.
I've seen in other states where they have the repaving equipment a couple of miles behind the stripping crew and it gets paved the next day.
forgeblast
Elite Member
I can agree that the road base is not done correctly. My road (dirt/modifed gravel road) was made by pushing in the stone walls on either side of the road and covering it with gravel....now that you have full water trucks compressing it you see where it needs work. I will say that when Cabot was actively drilling in our area they maintained the roads daily. From grading to wetting it to keep the dust down they were great. I have had zero problems with Cabot and seeing how they treat the people they own leases of I am glad they hold mine. Now that they are done the township needs to step back up and they don't want to.
JDgreen227
Super Member
As a Michigan resident I can say 300Uguy hit it right on the head about the lousy roads here, and what makes me really furious is that the residents here pay obscene prices for registration fees, which we are told are earmarked ONLY for road and bridge construction and repairs. What a crock of s**t. Back in '92 my registration fee for a '90 F-150 was FORTY FOUR DOLLARS a year, based on weight. Then they changed to a registration system based on the value of a vehicle new, and my next new truck weighed only 1500 pounds more than the '90 truck but the registration QUADRUPLED to $165 a year!!! My '04 Saturn weighs half of what my truck does but the registration is over $100 a year.
P-Rick Snyder, the turd we have as a governor here, wants to DOUBLE registration fees to help pay for road repairs....what a crock of s**t...why should I, the driver of a 3100 pound car who drives 4,000 miles a year pay to subsidize the guy who drives 50,000 miles a year with a 6200 pound truck? Registration fees should be based on vehicle weight and miles driven a year. There is no way all the registration fees collected over the past 20 years have been used for the purpose intended here.
P-Rick Snyder, the turd we have as a governor here, wants to DOUBLE registration fees to help pay for road repairs....what a crock of s**t...why should I, the driver of a 3100 pound car who drives 4,000 miles a year pay to subsidize the guy who drives 50,000 miles a year with a 6200 pound truck? Registration fees should be based on vehicle weight and miles driven a year. There is no way all the registration fees collected over the past 20 years have been used for the purpose intended here.
coobie
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Don,t worry trickey Rick Synder our wonderful govenor with his 1 billion tax surplus will take care of us.TAX TAX is rickys theme.I bet he will get relected too.
OP
300UGUY
Super Member
Last weekend, a member of a business group was qouted in the Detroit News that the roads in and around Metro airport were so bad that it was hurting recruiting new businesses to Michigan. Coming out of the airport, the roads are full of potholes, they don't leave a good impression on new folks. I think a lot has to do with truck weights being very high.
OP