Another edition of CAA Saskatchewan's 'Worst Roads' campaign took place this spring.
If you haven't heard by now, local highways in both Highway 30 and 44 near Eston were named as the two worst in the province. West Central Online learned that out of the 292 submissions, the local highways riddled with potholes earned the #1 and #2 positions overall on this year's list.
Taking the top two spots is quite the feat according to CAA’s Worst Roads Roving Reporter, Angel Blair, who talked about what comes next.
"We share (the information) with the Ministry of Highways, Saskatchewan Heavy Construction Association, and what we often hear from them is that the results aren't a surprise."
One thing that does often come out of the contest according to Blair, is a chance to highlight the roads in question.
"Sometimes it's highlighting a road they may have missed, or it might just need some utility work or some other road construction they weren't aware of." said Blair, "In our view, if these roads get talked about more, and it prompts them maybe being boosted up the list. It brings that 'realness' to the fact that these roads are used, they are in need of repair, and they are unsafe. If it gets fixed, that's a win."
CAA Saskatchewan's 'Worst Roads' reporter Angel Blair filled us in with more on what's next for the "award winning highways' (Screengrab via CAA Saskatchewan video on Facebook)As of right now there are no official plans for Blair and the worst roads campaign to come visit Eston. According to Blair, in the past the roving reporter is to go out in the spring as more of a checkup to see if it has been fixed or not, and then dove a bit more into that possibility.
"The roving reporter's usual job is to go out the next year, and go to most of the places on that Top 10 list and say 'Hey, did these roads get fixed? Are they on a list to get fixed if they haven't been yet? What's the status, and what are the residents saying? Has it gotten worse? Are there different safety concerns? And why is this being talked about as an unsafe road for users.'"
Blair wants to hear from residents themselves. An example from last year showcased the fact that a fractured road in question was a key part in getting to another destination. Similarly, people around Eston know that if you want to make it to the Eston Riverside Regional Park, a bumpy trip to Eston that continues down Highway 30 is a perfect reason why the two local roads need to be fixed.
"If it hurts our tourism, our agriculture, our oil industry; we want to know about it because these roads are vital. We have 250,000 KM of roadways in Saskatchewan. We are a land-locked province. We need these roads, and we need them to be safe."
Once again, this information will be shared with various decision makers and stake holders. They take the findings into account when planning for the upcoming year.
"Planning and budget are key elements in fixing our roads. So many of these decision makers that we have asked, they will look at this list and sometimes it does add something to their radar." said Blair as SUMA and SARM, the already mentioned Ministry of Highways and Heavy Construction Association, and different levels of government are all heavily involved in the conversation.
The secret is out. Highways 30 and 44 need some work.
With the high amount of recognition gained this year, it wouldn't be a surprise to see some extra dollars allocated to west-central Saskatchewan in the coming year.
Sat, Apr 20, 8:30 AM
