A bird’s eye look at Anderson Township’s inventory of 121 miles of roads shows a positive picture, says a consultant who surveyed the township’s roads for the fifth time in 15 years.
An “astounding” 85 percent of the overall road network was gauged to be in fair to excellent condition, according to Public Works Director Richard Shelley, with very few roads in need of massive repair.
The 2016 road survey undertaken by Highway Consulting Services represents the trustees’ efforts to determine where the township should spend its road repair funds. Annual funds spent on paving and curb repairs could equal about $1.25 million or 40 percent of the township’s Road and Bridge Fund.
Road maintenance is a high priority for township trustees who are charged under the Ohio Revised Code to maintain roads as one of their basic responsibilities. “This inventory helps us validate our ongoing maintenance strategy is working, as well as guides us to set priorities for future curb and road repair,” Shelley noted.
In the inventory, roads are generally given a condition ranking from one to five, which ranges from “failed” to “excellent.” Only 15 percent of township roads were deemed to be in “poor” to “very poor” condition, with none in the “failed” category.
Early maintenance spending applied in the life cycle of a road pays off in lower overall rehab rates and lower general costs down in the future, Shelley said.
“We can’t afford to keep every road in the ‘excellent’ category, but we also do not want any in the ‘failed’ and we do not have any in failed condition,” he said.
Sidewalk repair also falls into the area of responsibilities covered by Anderson Township. Overall, Shelley said the township maintains 92 miles of sidewalks with an annual budget of $300,000. This summer, 85 ADA upgrade ramps were installed on sidewalks in Summit Estates to comply with federal accessibility requirements. Next year, Shelley said the township will continue its five-year plan to repair the township’s full sidewalk inventory. This effort began in 2015 and will address nearly six million square feet of sidewalk.
Trustee President Andrew Pappas said the township was committed to continue investing in infrastructure to keep up the high quality of life in the community.
“We’re doing a good job trying to stay on top of the roads,” said Pappas. “We know this is important to residents and the way they view quality of life in the township,” he said. “We have a process; if your road is bad, we will get to your road as we cycle through our repairs.”
For a complete view of the 2016 road inventory, please see below.