Better roads

[cthulhu63]

You know... there is an actual meteorlogical reason for why the roads are so bad in Michigan... and the cost is much higher to fix the roads in Michigan because of something called "Frost Wedging" ever heard of it?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I've heard that as well. The problem with that theory is that roads are better up north. I grew up in northern Michigan, and our roads are much better than the roads in Detroit (despite Detroit getting the majority of the State roads monies). A good part of that is building the roads correctly the first time. We know the roads will swell and shrink with the seasons, so the civil engineers account for that when they are built. It doesn't help that when you finally get a road commissioner who knows what it'll take, he is forced to step down when what he proposes goes against the policy of a bunch of politicians who are not civil engineers, and have never poured concrete or laid asphalt. The road commission of Detroit should get off their high-horse and listen to the civil engineers from Marquette, Houghton, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Duluth, etc. The frost wedging effect isn't nearly as bad in Detroit as it is in these more northern cities, but the roads are better.

Another thing Detroit needs to do is get out of the pocket of the salt mines. Salt deteriorates roads. It's a proven fact. It's also a proven fact that Detroit uses more salt than any other municipality. If the road commission learned when to plow, they would not need to use as much salt. They could use more sand instead of salt.