Muddy clay roads a yearly concern for P.E.I. residents, first responders

It's an unpleasant sign of spring on Prince Edward Island:muddy clay roads.

One resident says these days, the Centre Road in St. Ann, P.E.I.,is particularly bad. It can betough to walk alongor slick to drive on in a regular vehicle.

Guy Arcoite has lived on the clay road for seven yearsand saidhis car has taken a beating since Centre Road was resurfaced in 2016.

I'm a country guy. I've never been afraid of a little dirt for sure. Where I get concerned is for my safety. GuyArcoite

He can get up and down in his four-wheel drive, buthe's worriedthat emergency vehicles might not make it.

"I'm a country guy. I've never been afraid of a little dirt for sure," Arcoitesaid."Where I get concerned is for my safety."

He saidlast year a neighbour had an emergencybut the fire department had a hard time responding to thecall.

Concern for fire chief

"Upon getting there, we realised the road was a little greasy," said Jason Peters, the New Glasgow fire department chief.

"Acouple of our own members had gotten in with a four wheel drive first and then kind ofphone the trucks ahead and warned us of how greasy the road was.We took one in,it was kind of a treacherous little drive."

The fire departmentwrote the local MLA to saythis road and other area clay roads are a concern.

"If we don't get there or get stuck it doesn't look good for our department and certainly the outcomeis not going to be good for whoever we're going to try and reach for the emergency," Peters said. "Of us not getting there or being 10 minutes late."

1,500 km of clay roads across the Island

The Department of Transportation said it maintains approximately 1,500 kilometresof clay roads across the Island.

When the roads dry out in the spring, the department inspects them and improvements are made where requiredthrough grading, ditching and the addition ofshale orgravel.

"We just never seem to have any improvement," said Brad Trivers, MLA for Rustico-Emerald."What I want to see is a long-term plan for how we're going to improve our roads,especially our clay roads."

The Department of Transportation said it inspects the Centre Road in St. Annevery spring and will determine where improvements can happen.

Transportation officials saidthey also work with Island emergency service providers if needed during an emergency situation.

'I am not looking for a road paved of gold'

Arcoitesaid he has noticed thatCentre Road has gotten worse in the last couple of years,with the ruts getting deeper and any shale added doesn't seem to help.

"I am not looking for a road paved of gold,"Arcoitesaid. "All's I want is to be like everybody else on the island here, to make sure that my safety, that an ambulanceif I get sickthat an ambulance can reach me."

Arcoite saidgravel would help and that hehopes improvements come soon.

"We need someone to look at it and make it right, you know...so I feel safe again."

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