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Poor road infrastructure is costing drivers an extra $126 per vehicle in costs yearly, according to a new report from the Canadian Automobile Association.
CAA completed an analysis that indicated poorly maintained roads cost a total of $3 billion for drivers collectively.
Julia Kent is the director of public and government affairs with CAA Atlantic.
She said this study looks at what poor roads are costing drivers as opposed to what it costs to build or repair the roads.
“This study calculates how much more drivers pay in maintenance and other costs when they drive on poor roads versus those rated as average roads or just above average roads, so we’re not talking about comparing poor roads to brand new, perfect roads,” she said.
Kent said this study is intended to be a win-win situation for consumers, drivers and government by encouraging investment into smart infrastructure.
“Over the lifetime of a 10-year car, that adds up to $1,250 so we’re not talking about small amounts here, and close to half of Canadian roads, according to this study, are rated below average, 43 per cent,” she said.
The analysis includes solutions for congestions as well as recommendations for how to improve roads.
Kent said the study breaks down the average cost per province, and New Brunswickers pay an average annual incremental cost of $80 due to poor roads per vehicle.
The study was released just as voting opened up for CAA Atlantic’s annual Worst Roads campaign, where every resident is asked to participate to vote in the campaign. Once the results are gathered, CAA takes them to all levels of government to advocate for road improvements.
Kent said the campaign works, and governments would save money if they prioritized maintenance.
“It costs more to rebuild a road that has fallen apart than to repair one that’s in good shape, so they could put more spending on pavement preservation and preventative road maintenance and that benefits them in the long term,” she said.
“Or quick responsiveness to ensure that reported potholes and other major road problems are fixed as fast as possible. These are all things that are going to save governments money in the long term, so it just makes sense.”
She said voting for the worst roads is open until April 13th. You can vote for as many roads in one day as you’d like but you can only vote for the same road once a day.
One suggestion is maintaining roads before they deteriorate, plus smart infrastructures like different street designs which include pedestrians, cyclists and motorists.
