Hinchinbrooke Road

Susan Ungar | Jan 06, 2021

I would like to respond to an article published in the December 17, 2020 edition of your paper, by Wilma Kenny for the South Frontenac Committee of the Whole. Asset Management Plan and Public Services Capitol Budget. Specifically, in relation to the Hinchinbrooke Road project.

For anyone who has travelled on Hinchinbrooke Road for the past 8 months can thank Mark Segsworth as it was his recommendation to what he saw as a better solution than the constant patching that they have had to do on Hinchinbrooke Road over many years. The decision was to pulverize the road, thereby building a good base to form a road top (supposedly). The thoughts behind pulverization is to rip up existing asphalt and then reform that asphalt into a solid surface through asphalt stabilization which is the addition of tar and waterproofing and binding agents to mix with the crushed asphalt. They missed the stabilization step. The road is now mud, wash boarded, dusty, full of pot-holes, large chunks of asphalt that is being thrown around by the traffic on the road. It’s not bad enough that we must be isolated to our homes, but now we can’t even go outside due to the flying debris and dust.

My husband approached Mayor Ron Vandewal to ask if the speed limit could be reduced because of the construction and condition of the road. The current speed limit is 60 km, the roads department posted orange coloured signs at 60 KM/hr. Apparently Mr. Segsworth feels that the road is a little rough in a couple of spots and does not empathize with the residents on the road and this was his passive-aggressive way of stating that.

We went out yesterday to pick up last minute items and saw 2 spots on the road where vehicles had gone off into the ditch and 1 spot where someone skidded on the road. We now have a mudslide for a road which makes it very dangerous for people travelling at high rates of speed.

According to the township they estimate that roads have an expected lifespan of 30 years of useful life. I have been looking over the township budgets for the past number of years and do not understand how something estimated at 750,000.00 in September of 2017, then in the 2020 budget it was estimated at 846,000.00 where only $440,000.00 was in the township budget, meaning it would have to span across a number of years. Now according to the 2021 budget the road repair is estimated at $1,793,100.00. How can the budget increase so much in less than a year?

Anyone travelling on Hinchinbrooke Road (South) please take caution as the road condition is very poor and will likely be for quite some time yet.

Susan Ungar