Gravel roads are about to get the attention they need.
Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal Minister Geoff MacLellan announced the province will provide $10-million annually to the new gravel road improvement program.
It means $2.9-million a year will be spent on repairing potholes, poor drainage or replacing gravel in the western district, which includes Lunenburg, Queens, Shelburne and Yarmouth counties.
The money is broken down based on the number of kilometres of gravel road in each district.
The central district, including HRM, will receive $1-million, the northern district is getting $2.7-million and the eastern district will get $3.4-million.
MacLellan feels it was a necessary step to take.
“You know we do what we can with the paving aspect, whether it be the large-scale capital projects or local roads, but the gravel roads were just simply neglected and that’s not a political statement; that’s the reality of it.”
MacLellan says significant repair is needed for roughly 35 percent of gravel roads.
He says DOT staff will work with local stakeholders to determine this year’s projects, based on road conditions and traffic volume.
