Will Gouin Blvd. East be named the worst road in Quebec again? Probably
Pitted stretch of decaying road already in 1st place as CAA-Québec collects votes
Gouin Boulevard East is leading the pack to once again be named the worst road in the province, according to a CAA-Québec poll.
The automobile club's fifth annual Worst Roads campaign closes May 24, and 12,000 motorists have already voted in the two weeks since polling began.
So far, the pitted and bumpy stretch of Gouin that won the top spot last year is holding onto first place, thanks to frustrated drivers and locals.
"Even the patching isn't level with the streets, so you're always bumping up and down," said driver Galae Baki.
Pedestrians are subjected to long stretches that don't have a sidewalk.
"We definitely don't come by very often on weekends. Between cyclists, and other pedestrians and cars, with a stroller, it's not the best place to walk," said Vanessa Contenta.
CAA-Québec said the point of compiling the list is to give citizens a say in how their roads are cared for.
"We want to the give them this opportunity to come, to let the authorities know what they expect, their needs in terms of road transportation," spokesperson Annie Gauthier said.
An official for the Rivière-des-Prairies–Pointe-aux-Trembles borough said the borough is working on a plan to reconfigure the road.
A Montreal spokesperson told CBC News it has issued a call for tenders to fix the road, and it expects work to begin in July.
According to CAA-Québec, preventative maintenance is preferable to fixing roads once they are in a serious state of disrepair.
"It costs 250 times more to lay a new road after 15 years of no maintenance than to perform regular preventive maintenance on the same road," the association said in a news release Thursday.
Gouin Boulevard East was voted the worst road in Quebec in 2018 and has been in the top 10 for the past three years.