Wednesday, January 06, 1999
Fewer city roads 'good' or 'excellent'
BY LISA DONOVAN
The Cincinnati Enquirer
The city of Cincinnati is losing ground when it comes to keeping its roads in “excellent” and “good” condition, city officials reported Tuesday.
Specifically, 57 percent of the city's street lane miles were in excellent or good condition in 1997, down from 60 percent in 1996 and 65 percent in 1993.
The most recent decline was attributed to extensive repair work on streets in Queensgate, which permit fewer lane miles to be rehabilitated, City Engineer Prem Garg wrote in a study.
The report examines some of the 100 recommendations issued in 1987 by the Smale Commission, which identified a need for improvements to the city's infrastructure, ranging from sidewalks to bridges.
The report Tuesday says several things are being done to improve roads:
• The city and Hamilton County engineer's office have jointly developed a special material to fill in trenches, mini mizing damage from pavements cuts that result from work on utilities.
• The University of Cincinnati Infrastructure Institute is studying less expensive ways to fill potholes.
“The street network is one of the basic infrastructure assets of the city, and its deterioration could negatively impact the quality of life in the life of the city,” Mr. Garg said.
“Nothing would please me more than to make the city's streets better, so if you're visiting the city and leave, you feel like, "I'm leaving a beautiful place,' and when you come to work, you feel like, "I'm coming to a great place,'” Mr. Garg said.
The city allocated roughly $70 million in 1997 for infrastructure improvements detailed in the report. The money comes from a variety of sources, including city-issued bonds and a portion of the city's 2.1 percent earnings tax. The tax is levied on those who work or live in the city.
Overall, Mr. Garg gave a thumbs up on improvements across the board but cautioned that new infrastructure needs continue to be identified.
He said the city should pat itself on the back for bridge maintenance and repair. The report found that 86 percent of 57 city bridges are in satisfactory condition; of the 73 county bridges in the city, 78 percent are in “satisfactory or better” condition.
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