Mr. Wadsworth,
Thank you for your response to our concerns over the
deteriorating condition of our neighborhood's streets,
specifically, East O and East N Streets. We have been reporting
the poor condition of these streets since at least 2008. Yet, the
City of Benicia has taken virtually no action to repair them. Our
neighborhood feels like we have been ignored and forgotten by the
City.
You stated that 35% of Benicia's streets are in "...poor or
failed condition." Is the pavement condition of Benicia's streets
the worst streets in Solano County? What criteria do you use to
determine if a street will be repaved? We have witnessed many of
Benicia's streets that are in much better condition being
repaved. When does the deteriorated condition of a street reach
the level of requiring emergency repair? One has to dodge
potholes on East O Street near the car wash much like driving down
a farmer's dirt road. One would think that such a deteriorated
condition would warrant immediate repair. We think that the 400
block of East O Street needs immediate repair. You can visit our
website at
www.safebenicia.blogspot.com to pictures of the
street's failed condition.
While we take pride in our neighborhood, this is not just a
nuisance and asthetic issue. This is a
safety issue.
The numerous potholes, cracks, and surface failures that you
mentioned can easily cause bicyclists and motorcyclists to lose
control, especially in wet conditons.
The area in question is about 4 blocks long. This would not seem
to be a huge project. We urge you to take immediate action to
repair the unacceptable conditions that have been ignored by the
City for over 8 years. Anything less would not be fulfilling the
City's responsibility to Benicia's businesses and residents.
We look forward to your answers to our questions. Thank you
again for your response.
Ross Sagun
www.safebenicia.blogspot.com
On 9/19/2016 11:51 AM, Graham Wadsworth
wrote:
Mr.
Sagun,
I
drove on East N and East O Streets, and looked up the
Pavement Condition Index (PCI), which are 27 and 35,
respectively. The streets have deep longitudinal cracks,
alligator cracking, and surface failures. It appears that
the City has done some patch paving on these streets in the
past. The Public Works crew fills potholes in the fall
before the winter rains begin, so I am copying the
Superintendent for his information.
The
Metropolitan Transportation Commission classifies a PCI less
than 25 out of 100 as a “very poor / failed” street, and
recommends that the street be reconstructed. The portion of
East O between East 4th and East 5th
appears to have reached this level. On page 8 of the
attached City Manager’s Report, it states that 70 out of 200
miles (or 35%) of City streets are in poor or failed
condition. With a decrease in Gas Tax funding over the past
20 years, there is more work to do than funding available to
fix the City’s streets.
The
City used Measure C sales tax revenue to hire a contractor
to do some patch paving work on streets south if I-780
within the past year, but I did not see any recent patches
on these streets. Measure C funding will be used to pave
Southampton Road from Hastings Drive to the new pavement
near Panorama Drive. In October, City staff will be
preparing a paving program to use the available funding as
cost effectively as possible to stretch the dollars as far
as possible. East O Street is already on the Pavement Repair
Request Log. By copy of this email, I am asking Lisa to add
East N Street to the Log. We plan to hire a contractor to do
more patch paving in 2017, so we will see if there are
places on East N and East O Streets where that makes sense.
The
paving program will be used to recommend projects in the
Fiscal Year 2017-19 Budget. If you would like more
information about the paving program, feel free to contact
Steve Yee at the email above or 746-4240.
Graham
Wadsworth, P. E.
Public
Works Director / City Engineer
City
of Benicia Public Works Department
250
East "L" Street
Benicia,
CA 94510
707-746-4240
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