Connection: Repair Backlog

If driving bad roads is like paying a hidden tax, Spokane residents may be feeling a bit gouged.

Many streets crisscrossing the city are pitted and pockmarked. Tires disappear into potholes. Deep grooves act like railroad tracks, with drivers nearly held hostage to the pull of the road.

Spokane’s 826 miles of streets are plagued by a $99 million backlog in repairs. Also missing from the city’s road budget is $3.5 million for annual maintenance.

Across the state line in Idaho, Coeur d’Alene’s City Council has chosen to sink $600,000 annually into keeping the city’s 181 miles of streets in good shape.

“The annual overlay program supported by the council has improved the streets tremendously,” said Jon Ingalls, Coeur d’Alene street superintendent.

Back in Spokane, there’s no similar plan to deal with the growing problem, and voters twice have rejected tax measures aimed at fixing the streets.

A citizens committee is trying to discern whether residents are now willing to pay to fix the problem, and if so, how much. A survey aimed at gauging public sentiment can be found at community centers and libraries.

The committee also plans a series of meetings in April to help people better understand how the streets got so bad and how little money there is to fix them.

The current disrepair found on Spokane’s streets largely can be traced to city officials deciding to spend more on police and fire while neglecting roads. The money that has been spent tends to pay for new roads, not old and battered ones.