Seriously, enough with these roads

[OKC Heel]

rant/
For a city with so many plans and high hopes for the future, i can't for the life of me understand how one of the most basic needs for a major metro area continues to go unmet. The roads i'm forced to drive on daily in this city are nothing short of an embarrassment for the city. Am i really expecting too much when all i want are smooth driving surfaces? Is it that unrealistic to expect not to have to dodge pot holes the size of golf bunkers, 3 inch drop offs where manholes are in the street, the debris left behind by emergency response personnel at the location of a car wreck, the wavy ripples you have to traverse when going through many of the city's intersections?

Pardon the rant, but i'm tired i'm just a little tired of having to get my vehicles realigned every other week not to mention the tires and bent rims i've endured over the years. The conditions of the city streets are exactly why i have to laugh anytime someone talks about the lofty expectations for the future of OKC.

"In order to be a leader in the future, you must first conquer the problems that have plagued you in the past"

/end of rant

[hipsterdoofus]

rant/
For a city with so many plans and high hopes for the future, i can't for the life of me understand how one of the most basic needs for a major metro area continues to go unmet. The roads i'm forced to drive on daily in this city are nothing short of an embarrassment for the city. Am i really expecting too much when all i want are smooth driving surfaces? Is it that unrealistic to expect not to have to dodge pot holes the size of golf bunkers, 3 inch drop offs where manholes are in the street, the debris left behind by emergency response personnel at the location of a car wreck, the wavy ripples you have to traverse when going through many of the city's intersections?

Pardon the rant, but i'm tired i'm just a little tired of having to get my vehicles realigned every other week not to mention the tires and bent rims i've endured over the years. The conditions of the city streets are exactly why i have to laugh anytime someone talks about the lofty expectations for the future of OKC.

"In order to be a leader in the future, you must first conquer the problems that have plagued you in the past"

/end of rant

Dude, its way more important that we have parks and aquatic centers for senior citizens than roads to get to them - haven't you been reading all the propaga....erm...information posted on here?

[soonerguru]

Dude, its way more important that we have parks and aquatic centers for senior citizens than roads to get to them - haven't you been reading all the propaga....erm...information posted on here?

Hey doofus, the roads are being fixed from the 2007 bond issue. Propaganda? You can do better than that.

[Architect2010]

?

Some of the worst streets on the Southside have been taken care of recently. Mostly neighborhood streets. But Shields, which was straight nasty, was recently repaved. It seems Walker is always getting repaved and as long as I can remember, it's always a smooth ride. Western too. Penn needs some loving, as well as May. 44th is nice. Same for 36th. Santa Fe was recently repaved also. 59th is fine. I just don't really understand this? Maybe you live in the boonies or on the north side which I'm not as acquainted with. Perfectly understandable.

[soonerguru]

?

Some of the worst streets on the Southside have been taken care of recently. Mostly neighborhood streets. But Shields, which was straight nasty, was recently repaved. It seems Walker is always getting repaved and as long as I can remember, it's always a smooth ride. Western too. Penn needs some loving, as well as May. 44th is nice. Same for 36th. Santa Fe was recently repaved also. 59th is fine. I just don't really understand this? Maybe you live in the boonies or on the north side which I'm not as acquainted with. Perfectly understandable.

Quit trying to confuse us with the facts! We want to be ANGRY!

[betts]

I'm pretty sure the bond issue passed in 12/07 will be addressing road issues. But, I'm really confused about all the road rants. I drive a mini, which doesn't exactly have a suspension to die for, and I've not noticed anything major here. I've lived up north for half my life, however, and the snow, ice and salt do major damage to roads up there. They were always a mess, and always under repair. So, perhaps my perspective is a little off.

I'm more interested in getting cars off roads, however, as fewer people driving would mean less maintenance.

[soonerguru]

rant/
For a city with so many plans and high hopes for the future, i can't for the life of me understand how one of the most basic needs for a major metro area continues to go unmet. The roads i'm forced to drive on daily in this city are nothing short of an embarrassment for the city. Am i really expecting too much when all i want are smooth driving surfaces? Is it that unrealistic to expect not to have to dodge pot holes the size of golf bunkers, 3 inch drop offs where manholes are in the street, the debris left behind by emergency response personnel at the location of a car wreck, the wavy ripples you have to traverse when going through many of the city's intersections?

Pardon the rant, but i'm tired i'm just a little tired of having to get my vehicles realigned every other week not to mention the tires and bent rims i've endured over the years. The conditions of the city streets are exactly why i have to laugh anytime someone talks about the lofty expectations for the future of OKC.

"In order to be a leader in the future, you must first conquer the problems that have plagued you in the past"

/end of rant

Perhaps you've noticed, but the city is currently doing about half a billion dollars worth of road repairs. This is from the bond issue we voted for in 2007. That's why you'll notice so many streets are under construction, because, they're, um, getting fixed. But don't let the facts dampen the angry spirit of your rant.

[mugofbeer]

I really don't see what room there is to complain. There is hardly a city in the US of OKC's size or larger where roads are perfect - kinda comes with the territory of being a big city. Not every city can have the money, such as the DFW metro, to pave all the major roads with 18-inch thick concrete that won't decay for 100 years. Our roads are perfectly reasonable compared with any large city. Be thankful OKC isn't in a cold climate where asphalt crumbles like a stale piece of bread.

[okcpulse]

I really don't see what room there is to complain. There is hardly a city in the US of OKC's size or larger where roads are perfect - kinda comes with the territory of being a big city. Not every city can have the money, such as the DFW metro, to pave all the major roads with 18-inch thick concrete that won't decay for 100 years. Our roads are perfectly reasonable compared with any large city. Be thankful OKC isn't in a cold climate where asphalt crumbles like a stale piece of bread.

Drive on Dallas and Houston arterials. Not the FM roads or Texas highways. I'm talking Post Oak Road here in Houston where even on a dry day you have to do 25 MPH just to kepp from doing major damage to the bottom of your car.

[jbrown84]

short term memory.

[iron76hd]

I could drive directly to several residential streets less than 5 miles from "Downtown" that are gravel.

"Big League" City!!!!

[Spartan]

I could drive directly to several residential streets less than 5 miles from "Downtown" that are gravel.

"Big League" City!!!!

Other cities you could do that in..

Denver, Dallas, Fort Worth, AUSTIN, Kansas City, to name a few..

[mrbob]

Drive OKC roads on a Harley. Its like being on a obstacble course. If you really want a eye opener drive I-40 on a bike. I won't get on I-40 on my bike or car. You really get to see I-40 on a bike and its scarry. Metal plates , patches and some rebar showing. Its just a matter of time before something happens. I take the long way around town.

[max]

Drive OKC roads on a Harley. Its like being on a obstacble course. If you really want a eye opener drive I-40 on a bike. I won't get on I-40 on my bike or car. You really get to see I-40 on a bike and its scarry. Metal plates , patches and some rebar showing. Its just a matter of time before something happens. I take the long way around town.

I'm sure that's a large part of why its being replaced at ground level.

FWIW, I live in the north inner city and there has been road repair (direly needed) going on almost nonstop for many months. The money from the last bond election is taking care of these problems in force. I can't speak for all sides of town, but the construction around here is everywhere. Most of it was direly needed. We got all of our neighborhood streets resurfaced, as did most adjoining neighborhoods, and several major thoroughfares are being done as well (some, such as Classen, needed it direly).

In my opinion, the city's historical method of running things on low budget and disregarding actual needs is what caused this level of disrepair. We'll probably need to regularly have bond initiatives like this to keep things going well. But for now, I'm just ecstatic that it is happening.

So frankly, the correlation between roads and MAPS makes no sense. The biggest roads and bridges projects I've ever seen here are going on right now. I hope we're more proactive in keeping these taken care of in the future, and I think we will be. I would go so far as to say that the first MAPS and their successes, along with changing ideas of government among the general populace of OKC, are why so much is being done now. People trust things to be done by the government finally, and they haven't yet given us a reason not to.

Before all of that, we have a history of distrust for government, voting no on anything requiring the raising of funds for the government, they starve, and nothing gets done due to lack of funds. Then their lack of funds was used to say "Look, they can't even accomplish anything with what they have, so they don't deserve any more." Government and good public service requires money, and in many case taxation, to work. And of course, once the money's there, diligence and oversight is required to ensure that government doesn't go astray. I think we've done well with this ever since the first MAPS.

[betts]

1. Are they in the city limits?

2. Do you know for a fact that paving them will not be covered by the 12/07 bond issue

3. Why do you live here if you think so little of this city?

4. Do you live here?

[FritterGirl]

Wow! I'm really starting to sound like a broken record, but here we go again.

FACT: Basic infrastructure projects such as City (not State) roads are funded through General Obligation Bonds.

FACT: The City underwent a 21-year funding drought between 1974 and 1995 when not a single bond issue was passed, and there was NO FUNDING for infrastructure improvements. Think about if there were only a single source of funding for improvements to your own home. Now think about if the citizens of that home said "no, we don't want to pay for that," for twenty-one years. With no funding for improvements in place, your home will fall into a state of disrepair pretty darn quickly.

FACT: In 1995, the City passed a General Obligation bond initiative that provided funding to start making upgrades and improvements to roads, and build roads to then-developing parts of the City. This started to take care of some of the issues that arose during the twenty-one years when no funding was availalbe (and no infrastructure improvements made), however, after twenty-one years with no funding, there was a LOT of catch-up to be made.

FACT: In 2000, another Bond Issue was passed. Because of the nature of Bond Issues, several of the 2000 project are still under way. (They are not "pay as you go" projects, so some projects take several years to come to fruition. It is the nature of the funding mechanism.

FACT: In 2007, voters passed yet ANOTHER Bond issue including $497 million dedicated to road improvements.

FACT: Repaving and/or reconstruction of I-40 is a Federal/State-funded project. It is not funded by the City.

With a City that is over 600 square miles you can hardly expect roads to be improved overnight. The Bond Issue money is not "up front" money. Only so many projects can be handled at one time, and there are only so many crews that can be out repairing roads at any given time.

In the area where I live, all three MAJOR North/South arteries that comprise the area communting points are being widened. Two of the East/West arteries have also been widened.

There is construction going on all over this place. It's not hard to find. Just open your eyes.

Before anyone complains about why we don't seek another funding alternative for infrastructure improvements, it's because our State Law dictates how local municipalities can fund certain types of improvements.

Another feather in the cap for MAPS. A great "pay as you go" funding mechanism, no interest paid, and you get the projects without too much lag time. Plus, funding doesn't dip into for basic infrastructure improvements.

Are many of our roads in bad shape? Absolutely. Is there something being done about it? Absolutely.

Rome wasn't built in a day. Don't expect our roads to magically all be perfect and improved in a day, either.

Thank you. Rant Over.

DISCLAIMER: Not a single emoticon was used for the dissemination of the information or related facts herewith.

[kevinpate]

...DISCLAIMER: Not a single emoticon was used for the dissemination of the information or related facts herewith.

(da debble mud me do dat)

[jc_4]

I have lived in chicago,KC, Dallas and here in OKC and these are by far the worst roads I've ever been on. I remember the first time I had to dodge a pot hole on the highway goin 70mph. I was pretty upset! Its sad to say but I've gotten used to it.

[jbrown84]

I have lived in chicago,KC, Dallas and here in OKC and these are by far the worst roads I've ever been on. I remember the first time I had to dodge a pot hole on the highway goin 70mph. I was pretty upset! Its sad to say but I've gotten used to it.

See: 21-year funding shortage (which you can thank the Mark Shannon types for)

[soonerguru]

See: 21-year funding shortage (which you can thank the Mark Shannon types for)

I actually think this is the goal of the more extreme wing of the teabagger set. Just to sow discord and create tangible proof of failure. It gives them a foundation for arguing that the government can't do anything effectively.

[mugofbeer]

I say again, you aren't going to find roads any better in any other major city. Bikers will still find gravel in the road, trash, etc. You will still find potholes. You will still have bumpy, dipped asphalt from heavy trucks driving on the roads in hot weather. There is nothing out of the ordinary about roads in OKC.

[MsProudSooner]

If you really want some roads to be angry about, come to Tulsa!

[dp1974]

Okay then, when the hell is the worst city councilman ever, Lyin Pat Ryan, going to get 164th between Penn and Western fixed? He has been promising that one for over 2 years. WORST ROAD EVER!

[FritterGirl]

Okay then, when the hell is the worst city councilman ever, Lyin Pat Ryan, going to get 164th between Penn and Western fixed? He has been promising that one for over 2 years. WORST ROAD EVER!

dp, have you not looked at the roads currently under construction in the SAME AREA?

May Avenue from 150th to 178th - UNDER CONSTRUCTION
Pennsylvania from 150th to 178th - UNDER CONSTRUCTION - including the bridge, which they just replaced
Western Avenue from 150th - 178th - UNDER CONSTRUCTION

178th between Western and Pennsylvania - CONSTRUCTION COMPLETED Fall 2009

164th IS and will be in line in the very near future, but don't you think, at least for the purposes of traffic flow, and I don't know, common sense, that they will wait until AT LEAST one of the North-South arteries is completed before working on 164th?

I agree it is one of the worst roads in the City, but once the others are completed, it will be done.

[dp1974]

dp, have you not looked at the roads currently under construction in the SAME AREA?

May Avenue from 150th to 178th - UNDER CONSTRUCTION
Pennsylvania from 150th to 178th - UNDER CONSTRUCTION - including the bridge, which they just replaced
Western Avenue from 150th - 178th - UNDER CONSTRUCTION

178th between Western and Pennsylvania - CONSTRUCTION COMPLETED Fall 2009

164th IS and will be in line in the very near future, but don't you think, at least for the purposes of traffic flow, and I don't know, common sense, that they will wait until AT LEAST one of the North-South arteries is completed before working on 164th?

I agree it is one of the worst roads in the City, but once the others are completed, it will be done.

No, common sense would be not to have construction on 3 consecutive North/south roads AT THE SAME DAMN TIME...AND DURING CHRISTMAS traffic. If it would have been done when he promised the first 2-3 times, we would not have these problems. They are now making Penn 4 lanes - which means they are tearing up 2 lanes that were just paved a few years ago - instead of 164th. Great planning dumbass.