DPW crews with the yellow paving machine beginning the process of paving over potholes on Granville Road (Photo by Peter Currier)
WESTFIELD- The Department of Public Works has begun a city-wide project aimed at mitigating the effect of the existing potholes throughout Westfield’s roads.
The city has been granted use of a new paving machine to act as a temporary fix for the more heavily affected roads in the city. The machine spreads a layer of fresh pavement in a way that prevents water from getting in. Potholes are created when water gets through cracks in the pavement and freezes in the colder months. The ice expands outward, pushing the pavement and creating holes.
Casey Berube, Deputy Superintendent of the DPW, said that this fix should last for four or five years. He hopes to have a more permanent fix, but it would require additional funding. Current estimates indicate that the annual cost of maintaining the roads in the city would be about $4 million, according to Berube. The budget for the road repair, however, only amounts to $1.2 million annually. The DPW only has the paving machine for one month, as it is being rented out. Berube said he wants to prioritize roads that receive more traffic. If necessary, he added that the machine may be able to be rented beyond the one-month period.
“We just need the money to do the work. We have good people,” said Berube.
Berube was with crews while they paved over parts of Granville Road last week. They also did work on Bates Road on Friday. Berube said he hopes to begin work on Lloyds Hill Road as early as Tuesday.
In addition to the repair of potholes, there are several road construction projects that will take place over the course of the next year. One notable road slated for construction soon is Western Avenue as part of a state project. According to an email sent to students by Westfield State University Communications Direction Tricia Oliver, that project is scheduled to begin this month. The email was a reminder to students to take care when walking or driving on the lengthy road, as WSU makes up a large portion of Western Avenue.
The Western Avenue project will be done to reconstruct, improve, and restore sections of the highly trafficked street. It will begin with the removal of marked trees on the sides of the road. Every tree that is removed will be replaced by two additional trees, according to the City Engineering Department website. The project is expected to last two years. The first year, beginning this month, will be focused on the utilities and drainage. Next year, year-two of the project, will focus on improvements to sidewalks and a new roadway. The project will cover the portion of the street east of Lloyds Hill Road and West of Llewellyn Drive, an area that is not covered by state contract.
Other road projects for the year have not been decided as of yet. Berube said that the DPW is awaiting a budget from the city in order to do so.
Mark Cressotti, the City Engineer, said that there is a list of roads that are considered to be in the greatest need of reconstruction. The list anticipates a budget of $4 million, but Cressotti said the actual budget will likely not reflect that, and they will have to decide which roads among the list are the greatest priority. He did not say which roads those were.
“As we recently demonstrated through a presentation to the city council, the [monetary] needs of the roads are more than what we have been getting,” said Cressotti.
He added that the roads are under a lot of stress and that Mayor Sullivan has tried to raise money to mitigate that via certain taxes. For approximately the last 20 years, the chapter 90 state funding for the city’s roads has paid less than $2 million annually.
“The value has not increased for 20 years,” said Cressotti, “What you could buy 20 years ago is less than half of what you could buy today.”
