Lane markings are fading on city streets
By Bobbi Mlynar (Contact)
Originally published 12:53 p.m., June 27, 2008
Updated 12:53 p.m., June 27, 2008
Q I have noticed many streets in the City of Emporia that badly need proper marking; 12th Avenue and Merchant Street is one of them. So many new people in the town, especially the college students and parents, won’t have a clue where to drive because the paint is worn off.
A Responsibilities for marking or striping streets depends on whether the street is also designated a state highway — and only a limited number of marking and line refreshments are planned this year.
Mike Dvorak, who is in charge of city streets, said that work has begun by his department on some streets that carry non-highway designations.
“We’re in a process now, they’re just getting started painting,” Dvorak said.
Work is planned on center lines along much of 12th Avenue, 24th Avenue, and on Industrial Road in the area of Wal-Mart, he said.
“When they re-do a street, they’ll come in and (install) thermal plastic,” Dvorak said of the markings. “But anything going through Commercial Street, Sixth Avenue, Highway 50, they try and have the state help and save some money.”
John Proehl, project supervisor for the city engineer’s office, said that currently there is only one state-related project planned that includes marking or striping.
“Anything like the state routes going through town, we’ll do that with our KLINK projects,” Proehl said. “This year the KLINK goes from Elm to Constitution. That area there, we’ll go through and re-do the surface and at that time we’ll do pavement marking at that area.”
“KLINK” is a euphemism for “City Connecting Links,” a program through the Kansas Department of Transportation.
Proehl said that at one time, the city did have a permanent markings-rehabilitation program.
“We hired a contractor to do that,” Proehl said. “That is one of the things that got cut out of the budget.”
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orlando (anonymous) says...
I feel the Emporia street program has hit the bye-bye key. Our streets and alleys are a disaster, I personally blame the City Manager. I have felt since the Somolian meeting that he was a very poor choice for City Manager, and that feeling has been affirmed. . He handled that situation very poorly, and he has not impressed me since.
June 28, 2008 at 12:42 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
justthefacts (anonymous) says...
Takes more than a year for streets and alleys to get the way they are. When you reduce the employees in public works from 15 to five to meet the budget goals of the commission what do you expect? You get what you pay for or should I say what you won't pay for. Don't blame the messenger, the city manager has been sounding the warning but nobody wants to hear the real story. Stop shooting the messenger.
June 29, 2008 at 8:40 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )