Penetanguishene Council approved an extra $20,000 in this year's budget after identifying road maintenance as a priority.
Bryan Murray, director of public works, said council approved the extra money after recognizing the aging infrastructure of the town.
The plan, he said, is pretty similar to what it has previously been and it lists which roads, over the next five years, will receive some attention.
"This plan outlines what we're proposing to do with our operational dollars," said Murray. "It gives an outline to the public and council on how we're planning on spending the money. We re-evaluate the plan on an annual basis. It gives residents an idea of how soon their road is going to be resurfaced."
The report notes the total expected costs for road maintenance for the period 2020-2025 will be about $1.93 million.
The first year of planned work will cost $350,000. That number is projected to increase to $365,000 for year two, rise to $385,000 for the third year, $405,000 for the fourth year and $425,000 for the last year of the plan.
"Prices are based on quotes received and trends seen over the years. Generally, prices increase as oil prices go up," Murray said, explaining that crude oil is a crucial ingredient in asphalt. Prices also depend on labour costs, which vary from year to year.
Sometimes extra funding becomes available through the various tiers of government, he added.
"For example last year, we got a one-time gas tax funding payment, close to $300,000," said Murray. "We were fortunate and council deemed it fit to use half of that towards our paving program. We used the rest of it for retrofitting our existing streetlights to LEDs."
Out of the approximately 91 kilometres of 'centre-lying' roads town, he said, 83 kilometres are asphalt; the remainder are gravel roads.
The plan lists that this year, Yeo Street (Fox Street to Beck Boulevard), Fox Street (Hunter Road to Don Street) and Therrien Court will receive hot mix asphalt treatment.
The roads slated to receive asphalt rejuvenation are Bellisle Road, Rogers Road, St. Amant Road, Mackenzie Court, and Champlain Road (Lepage Drive to Military Road).
As well, the report says that various locations will receive crack sealing treatment, pothole patching and other miscellneous road repairs.
Road maintenance always depends on available funding, said Murray, adding it depends on environmental conditions, too.
"You're getting a lot of freeze and thaw, so the snow melts in the day and freezes overnight," he said. "This happens almost on a daily basis, sometimes multiples times in a day. Water that is trapped under the roads expands and produces cracks and eventually creates potholes."
If water gets underneath the asphalt, it weakens the granular materials used in it and saturates the road to the point that the granular road material becomes weakened, Murray said.
That's why road maintenance is a year-round job, he said.
"Right now, we're winding down our winter season," Murray said.
Road maintenance in fall and winter includes plowing, sanding and salting, so roads are safe for public use. In the spring and summer months are when most of the town's road maintenance is done.
Hence, he said, the road plan is already in motion.
"As soon as the page on the calendar turns, we start working on the roads," said Murray. "The main thing we can do right now is pothole patching."
At a recent Ontario Good Roads Association Conference, he said, he was particularly interested in a new product, which reuses asphalt.
"It's called hot-in-mix recycling," said Murray, adding it's a cheaper product because, "In this particular process all of the trucking that is associated with mill and shave is cut out. They're reusing your existing road surface.
"They're rejuvenating your asphalt so it meets new specifications," he explained. "They're not bringing in any new asphalt and saving on hauling it away. That's something we're very interested in because it's a green technology and helps the town maintain its assets."
To view the report, click here and go to Page 16.
