Not as Many Miles of Road Repaving in Exchange for Sidewalks

An article in the Aug 4 issue of The Advocate (Stamford) titled “Rising Costs of Asphalt Curbs Projects” predicts “bumpier roads ahead” as public works officials put the brakes on paving. It confirms what we have been saying about the potential consequence of the dramatic rise in asphalt prices. The article quotes Public Works Senior Engineer Tiger Mann:

“We’re not going to be able to pave as many miles and do as much work because we’re paying more for materials,” said Tiger Mann…

That shouldn’t surprise anyone. The cost of the liquid asphalt binder is 97% higher than it was in March when the road repair appropriation and bonding were passed by the Board of Selectmen and Board of Finance (it had already risen slightly by the time the Town Council approved the appropriation and bonding a week later).

In The Advocate article, Ray Oneglia, vice chairman of Fairfield County’s main asphalt supplier (O&G Industries), said the problem is compounded because energy is also consumed in the manufacture of asphalt. Escalating the cost of road repair still further is the fact that trucks and other equipment used in paving run on diesel fuel, which is…up. 

Repair of the South Avenue sidewalks was approved as part of this year’s Public Works budget. While we are told that “it’s more cost effective to repair the Main Street sidewalks when the road is repaved,” that doesn’t justify why NEW sidewalk construction should be funded by a bond issue for Phase III of “a pavement management plan for the Town of New Canaan’s network of roads.”

We think the Town should be stretching that bond issue as far as asphalt prices will allow to maintain our network of roads.

Constructing new sidewalks so residents can walk to town may undoubtedly be a good thing, but it should be weighed in the context of the Town’s budget process against all the other good things, not slipped into an appropriation (and bond issue) stipulated to maintain our network of roads. We suspect the fire department and others whose budgets were cut this year might have some alternative ideas.

UPDATE 9/18/08 – This week’s Conn DOT posting shows a 151% increase in the cost of liquid asphalt binder material since March (that’s 2 1/2 times greater). The binder accounts for roughly 6% of the total cost of asphalt, which translates into a 9% increase in the cost of asphalt since March.

UPDATE 10/16/08 – With droping oil barrel price levels, the cost of liquid asphalt has come down slightly, but it has a long way to go before it falls to last spring’s level. This week’s posting shows a 137% increase in the cost of liquid asphalt binder material since March.

Asphalt Update, Budgeting for Sidewalks

Since we reported on the escalating price of asphalt two weeks ago, prices have continued to climb. The price of the binder, as reported by the Connecticut Department of Transportation, is now up 97% since March.

At last week’s Town Council meeting, Senior Engineer Tiger Mann observed that prices for asphalt had risen $15 per ton overnight.  The Town has been getting great bid numbers, though, since other towns in Fairfield County are not doing road work, he said. (Westport actually has several road projects in progress.)

The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday (July 23) that “refinery managers have been tasked with inventing means of cutting asphalt production in favor of more profitable products,” and that “while demand for asphalt is dropping, supply is falling much faster.”

We think the Town’s appropriation for Phase III of “a pavement management plan for the Town of New Canaan’s network of roads” should be used for road repair and stretched as far as asphalt prices will allow to maintain our roads. We would suggest that construction of new sidewalks appropriately belongs in the regular budgeting process, where priorities can be evaluated along with other projects the Town would like to undertake.

UPDATE 9/2 – As of 8/27, the cost of the binder is up 134% since March 4, the date of the Selectman’s meeting when the idea of including Main Street sidewalks in the bonding issue for “a pavement management plan for the Town of New Canaan’s network of roads” first surfaced.

Asphalt Escalation

On June 29 the New York Times Connecticut section published an article on the rising cost of asphalt. New Jersey is struggling to fix its potholes, and the AAA reports a 12.8% increase in flat tires from May 1 to June 17 in that state.

Asphalt is a mixture of an aggregate, made with stones or gravel, and a sticky, tarlike binder, which is made from petroleum. Senior Engineer Tiger Mann, in his presentation to New Canaan’s Board of Selectmen on March 4, observed that asphalt which cost $50/ton last year had risen to $85/ton, and noted that there was only one supplier in Fairfield County.

As the price per barrel of oil rises, so does the cost of the binder, which makes up 6% of the mixture that covers roads, according to the Times. The Connecticut Department of Transportation, which monitors costs of construction materials, notes that asphalt prices for performance-graded binder have increased 74% between March 4 and today – July 8. There was a 20% rise in the past week alone.

The $5 million bonding issue “for Phase III of a pavement management plan for the Town of New Canaan’s network of roads” was appropriated to cover two years of road repair. As delightful as sidewalks are to many of us, we wonder if the Town may end up trading off the published mandate of the bonding issue. The Town Charter (C5-13) might frown on that. Perhaps it’s time to take a prudent fiscal look at Phase III’s need-to’s and nice-to’s. Even a magician like Mr. Mann can only stretch dollars so far.