How're the ROADS Near You?!

**Gannon** · March-11-11, 10:47 AM

I drove out to Livonia the other day, exiting the Jefferies at Farmington Road...and had to dash between potholes like I've NEVER seen. Farmington Road down to Hines was like a war zone.

A new friend just told me he's had to buy three tires and two rims in the past three days for family members who've had 'encounters'.

Can we find out if Governor Snyder has any financial interest in anything which may profit from our pain...and also from the solution?!

Just a guess...but it seems the tide of public opinion is turning harshly against him, and thought I'd do my part.

Cheers!

Augustiner · March-11-11, 11:21 AM

We've had a week or so of weather hovering right around 32 degrees, with alternating rain and snow. I'm not exactly a Rick Snyder fan, but I doubt he's sneaking out to Farmington Road in the dead of night with a jackhammer to boost sales of tire companies.

**Hermod** · March-11-11, 11:29 AM

Can't fix it till the freeze-thaw cycle stops and the sub-base dries out.

Buy American · March-11-11, 11:34 AM

Little Mack from 9 Mile to 13 Mile is an obstacle course.

**Gannon** · March-11-11, 11:42 AM

Oh no, it HAS to be Snyder's fault.

You missed 'Public Political Discourse 101', which is a pre-requisite for participating in this discussion.

LOL

**MichiganMan** · March-11-11, 11:58 AM

Dollars to Donuts that the piece of road that Snyder travels with his State Police escort everyday between A2 and Lansing is well plowed and whatever potholes arise, get filled in quickly. To bad our little taxpayer funded Governor's residence in Lansing is too small and he has to commute from his mansion in Superior Township. Now we get to pay for protection at both places. He is such a good dad to be home every night. My boss has a little home in Clawson and drives back to Grand Rapids every weekend to be with his family. He also didn't want to disrupt his children's school activities. I'm sure if he had a driver and a police escort he would have stayed in Grand Rapids and commuted every day.

**Warrenite84** · March-11-11, 12:28 PM

Mound Rd. from 12mile to Hall rd. lots of deep holes-all lanes, and John R. rd. Big Beaver[[16 mile) to Maple [[15 mile).

**gazhekwe** · March-11-11, 12:28 PM

I'm in Florida this week. No freeze-thaw thing going on, no potholes to speak of. Some side streets are a little rough, though. I did hit a few good potholes on the way down including in North Carolina. I keep waiting for one of those tires to show some damage.

**Zacha341** · March-11-11, 02:09 PM

Arghh! I caught the pot-hole from HELL yesterday [[3/10/11) at 4:35 PM W I-94, Lodge North exit... that curved exit was full of deep, scattered pot-holes. I tried to do the 'dodge-em' the best I could but fell into a deep pot-hole bending my alloy wheel! I heard they closed the exit for repairs about an hour later. Too bad for me.... to have traveled thru it too early!

Originally Posted by Gannon

I drove out to Livonia the other day, exiting the Jefferies at Farmington Road...and had to dash between potholes like I've NEVER seen. Farmington Road down to Hines was like a war zone.

A new friend just told me he's had to buy three tires and two rims in the past three days for family members who've had 'encounters'.

Can we find out if Governor Snyder has any financial interest in anything which may profit from our pain...and also from the solution?!

Just a guess...but it seems the tide of public opinion is turning harshly against him, and thought I'd do my part.

Cheers!

GUSHI · March-11-11, 02:36 PM

Knock on wood, no pothole wheel/tire damage this year. Last year costed me 500.00. I just try to avoid potholes when possible.

**Zacha341** · March-11-11, 02:50 PM

I'd never damaged a wheel in all my years--only a tire or two. I am not replacing the alloy wheel [[at $100+)... I'll just be three nice allows and on 'junky' yet functioning wheel. Car old, so I guess it can be a bit mitch-matched. LOL!

Originally Posted by GUSHI

Knock on wood, no pothole wheel/tire damage this year. Last year costed me 500.00. I just try to avoid potholes when possible.

**Zimm** · March-11-11, 02:53 PM

no major complaints here. i certainly appreciate that ferndale keeps its roads in better condition than most of the communities around here. potholes are scarce. i did narrowly miss a huge pothole on northbound woodward just south of 14 the other day, and campbell between 10 and 12 is getting crappier by the day, but royal oak's roads have been maintained poorly for the decade i've lived around here, so i'm always on the lookout when i'm passing through.

**Hermod** · March-11-11, 02:57 PM

Originally Posted by Warrenite84

Mound Rd. from 12mile to Hall rd. lots of deep holes-all lanes, and John R. rd. Big Beaver[[16 mile) to Maple [[15 mile).

Mound Road has always been pothole heaven because of all of the industrial traffic. John R. seems to be the playground for the big double-bottom gravel trucks coming south from the glacial gravel beds north of M-59.

**Gannon** · March-11-11, 04:04 PM

There are some amazing repairs they can do to allow wheels now.

Not sure how the integrity holds up afterward, but there are a few places around.

Many years ago, I crossed paths with a Don Neubauer out of St. Clair Shores doing 'em. His number is [[586) 445-3160.

**Gannon** · March-11-11, 04:06 PM

He probably at least VOTED for Snyder.

<snicker>

**DetroitPlanner** · March-11-11, 04:34 PM

Originally Posted by Gannon

He probably at least VOTED for Snyder.

<snicker>

The underfunding of Transportation in this state predates Snyder by 50 years.

**Hermod** · March-11-11, 04:45 PM

Originally Posted by DetroitPlanner

The underfunding of Transportation in this state predates Snyder by 50 years.

Look, Michigan is going to have potholes every winter. It is just the nature of the beast. The freeze/thaw cycle in southeastern Michigan is just rough on roads. All you can do is just keepfixing them [[keeping trucks off them would help the most).

**Gannon** · March-11-11, 04:56 PM

Originally Posted by DetroitPlanner

The underfunding of Transportation in this state predates Snyder by 50 years.

I know...that's why I keep making it a JOKE.

Someone was going to put it out there...

But I'd say it goes deeper than that. The corruption of road-builders as profit-mongers has existed for as long as I've paid attention to it.

The biggest house I've ever seen on Pine Lake was built by a road-builder...who bought the old floor the Pistons used to play on when they were in the Silverdome for his gymnasium wing.

I'd say that anyone who advocates cheap concrete or asphalt is part of the problem.

That mile of test-road I-375 in the Euro-mix sure still looks great after all these years.

But, everyone says it costs more to build. I say if you add in the total 'tax' of vehicle repairs which happen due to these cyclical issues from shitty road construction techniques and capitalist practices the true costs reveal a much more accurate assessment. [[nobody should PROFIT off the public infrastructure building like this, at least not as obscenely as that fellow who built that monster house on Pine Lake...who subsequently got into trouble and went away somewhere, but I digress)

But it does seem much worse this year than most. Surely if any politician deserves the finger, it would be photogenic Jenny.

GUSHI · March-11-11, 04:57 PM

We need to stop using salt. Torontos roads arenice

Originally Posted by Hermod

Look, Michigan is going to have potholes every winter. It is just the nature of the beast. The freeze/thaw cycle in southeastern Michigan is just rough on roads. All you can do is just keepfixing them [[keeping trucks off them would help the most).

**Det_ard** · March-11-11, 05:06 PM

Originally Posted by DetroitPlanner

The underfunding of Transportation in this state predates Snyder by 50 years.

We're not alone. DC's subway/bus system has issues with broken and obsolete escalators, bus fare card readers, GPS tracking systems, security cameras, radios, etc. Their maintenance backlog goes back years and will take years to catch up, if they ever do [[lack of funds).

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...030905049.html

**softailrider** · March-11-11, 06:24 PM

Originally Posted by Hermod

Look, Michigan is going to have potholes every winter. It is just the nature of the beast. The freeze/thaw cycle in southeastern Michigan is just rough on roads. All you can do is just keepfixing them [[keeping trucks off them would help the most).

Sorry, I don't buy that one. Drive through Ohio or Indiana. The weather is the same, the roads are better.

**canuck** · March-11-11, 07:39 PM

Houston do you copy? We just landed in a crater in downtown Montreal.

But we did find a tiny sign of intelligent life...

GUSHI · March-11-11, 08:12 PM

Detroit wheel and tire repairs wheel, they located on 14 bet deq and john r on the troy side

Originally Posted by Gannon

There are some amazing repairs they can do to allow wheels now.

Not sure how the integrity holds up afterward, but there are a few places around.

Many years ago, I crossed paths with a Don Neubauer out of St. Clair Shores doing 'em. His number is [[586) 445-3160.

GUSHI · March-11-11, 08:15 PM

my neighbor just bought a wheel from a junk yard for 60 or 70 bucks. 2003 Mercury Grand Marquis

**gazhekwe** · March-11-11, 08:28 PM

Speaking of cheap, many communities seem to have abandoned blacktop in favor of chipseal for side streats. Ours were done in chipseal this past summer. It's supposed to be less costly than asphalt. The asphalt was more than 20 years old and it wasn't that bad. There was a pothole here and there and some cracking and deterioration on the edges, none of which were addressed before the chipseal application. So, it took a month and at least four applications to complete the chipseal. It now looks worse than the asphalt did, huge chunks are plowed up at the edges and even in the middle of the street in places. The cracks they were supposedly repairing are all showing as bad as they were before. It isn't just Michigan. When I tried to find out about chipseal, the best info was at the City of Englewood,CO which is using it on their streets. To me it looks like a huge boondoggle.