Drivers in Greater Sudbury don’t need to be told about the poor state of some Sudbury roads since they experience the lumps and bumps and potholes every day.
To help encourage change, Korey Kennedy, manager of public and government affairs for CAA North and East Ontario, suggested residents continue to cast their votes in the annual Worst Roads Campaign, up until Sept. 30.
He said in the past, CAA has ensured 90 per cent of the roads on the Top 20 list get repaired or slated for repair soon after the campaign closes each year.
Kennedy visited Sudbury at the beginning of September to help encourage awareness of the campaign. In previous years, Sudburians have been very vocal about the state of local roads, he said. “This campaign resonates extremely well with individuals throughout the Greater Sudbury area,” he said. “It seems each year that overall, collectively for the number of votes, Sudbury tends to finish in the top 10 (in the province).”
In 2008, Vermillion Lake Road was voted the worst road in the province during CAA’s Worst Roads Campaign. The 13-kilometre road is littered with potholes and cracks. Photo by Jenny Jelen
He added that each year, “we usually tend to see a road or two, or maybe even three, nominated in the Greater Sudbury area.”
Paris and Regent Streets normally appear on the list, and one Sudbury road has even topped it.
In 2008, Kennedy said Vermillion Lake Road in Chelmsford was voted the worst road in the province. According to voters on the CAA website, nothing has been done to fix it yet.
As of Sept. 20, Vermillion Lake Road was ranked third on the list.
One voter, who drives a school bus on Vermillion Lake Road, commented about the poor state of the road.
“The speed limit is 80 km/h and if I were to drive close to the speed limit, my bus might fall apart,” the commenter stated. “I also have a very sore back from driving on this ‘road.’ And my bus schedule is always shot.”
A student, who rides a bus on Vermillion Lake Road, said the trip is “horrible.” “I don’t think this is acceptable to be called a ‘safe’ road,” the student stated. “Something has to be done to this road before serious injuries are caused because of the road.”
Kennedy said bad roads are not only dangerous, but they can cause “extremely astronomical” financial damage to vehicles.
Vermillion Lake Road was voted the worst road in the province in 2008 during CAA’s Worst Roads Campaign. No improvements have been made to the road yet, so locals want to make sure it tops the list again this year. Photo by Jenny Jelen
Dan Monahan, a mechanic technician at Dan Courville Chevrolet, said about 65 per cent of the vehicles he sees with suspension problems are a result of Sudbury’s roads.
He said roads also cause problems like broken leaf springs and coil springs, damaged tires, ball joints, tie rod ends and stabilizer links.
While drivers wait for infrastructure to catch up, Monohan said they should simply slow down.
“The best thing would be to try to avoid the potholes that are out there and drive slower on them,” he said. “People hit them at highway speeds — maybe we should just slow down a little bit on our roads. That would probably help.”
Along with the campaign for Ontario’s worst roads, CAA is also running a contest for the best roads. As of Sept. 20, Falconbridge Road and Highway 69 were on the list, sitting at 12th and 19th respectively.
To cast your vote for Sudbury’s worst or best road, follow the links from www.caasco.com.
