Thomas MacMillan Photo
Even after all the snow melts away, the city will face two lingering effects of our record-setting winter: A costly pothole season and a half-million-dollar hit to parking meter revenue.
City officials spoke last week about those companion problems, both of which are caused by a season of unprecedented winter precipitation. All the snow and ice has led to a “freeze-thaw” cycle that’s creating new and bigger holes on the city’s asphalt streets. It could mean an expensive pothole season is on the horizon, said Howard Weissberg, deputy public works director.
Meanwhile, the mounds of snow occupying downtown have led to fewer people driving into town and fewer parking spaces available to those who do. That means fewer quarters collected and fewer parking tickets handed out, according to Jim Travers, acting head of the traffic and parking department.
Travers said the city is seeing a $500,000 reduction in meter and ticket revenue so far compared to last fiscal year.
“We’re seeing about a 40 percent reduction in meter revenue this January to last January,” Travers said. “And we’re seeing about a 21 percent reduction in tag revenue from this January to last January.”
That’s offset somewhat by an increase in tickets given out during snow emergencies, Travers said.
The city has had 52 inches of snow, Travers said. “That’s an awful lot of snow, and where does it go?” While some of it has been hauled away, a lot of it has to be simply pushed back. Downtown, that means it piles up in parking spaces.
“We are definitely seeing less people parking on the street because there are less available parking spaces on the street,” Travers said. It’s a revenue loss for the city, but it’s also having an impact on downtown merchants, he said. The snow has “this ripple effect” that goes beyond just shoveling out one’s driveway and moving on, he said.
Travers said he has heard complaints of not being able to reach parking meters in order to put quarters in after parking. In most cases, however, if the meter isn’t accessible, it probably means the space isn’t either. To try to park there will just obstruct traffic, he said.
Even if there should be a space somewhere, if trying to park there means your car is blocking traffic, traffic and parking will ticket and maybe tow the car, Travers said.
Hold tight to that wheel! An Elm Street crater.
As the snow recedes, drivers may return to downtown, but they may have a rougher ride in. Weissberg said public works is anticipating a difficult pothole season ahead.
All the snow this year has meant that public works has put down more salt on the roads. The salt lowers the freezing point and helps ice melt to make the streets clearer and safer. But it also feeds into a “freeze-thaw” cycle in which water seeps into the roads, then later re-freezes, expands and cracks apart the asphalt, Weissberg said. “It essentially pops out pavement all over the place.”
The full extent of the damage won’t be clear until winter is over, Weissberg said. In the meantime, public works has two crews out every day treating the worst of the potholes. But since it’s winter and the asphalt plants aren’t open, the crews can do only “cold mix” patches, which provide more of a temporary fix than “hot mix.”
Weissberg said public works has been using the website SeeClickFix to find out where potholes have gotten particularly bad.
Weissberg said he couldn’t estimate how much the city spends annually on pothole repair. It will likely be spending more this year, he said.
East Rock Aldermen Justin Elicker said he’s already worried about potholes. Although many streets are still partially covered with ice, “what I’m seeing around the neighborhood is concerning,” Elicker said.
A cycling advocate who doesn’t own a car, Elicker said he anticipates a lot of problems for biking. While potholes can make a car lose a hubcap or damage the wheel, a cyclist can face “a life and death situation.”
Come across any particularly deep craters? Let us know in the comments below.
but pothole can be used for so many things
http://www.funlobby.com/index.php/201001121457/converting-potholes-into-eye-catching-events.html
What other uses can you find?