City Services»Roads & Transportation»Road & Traffic Operations»Street Maintenance

Street Maintenance

Street Maintenance Concerns

If you require street maintenance for any of the following, please contact Engineering Customer Service: 604-927-3500

Potholes

Potholes are caused by cracks in the pavement that allow water to undermine the road base.

Streetlight Outages

Before calling, please note if the streetlight is on a metal or wooden pole. Lights on wooden poles belong to BC Hydro and will usually be repaired within 10 working days. Lights on metal poles belong to the City and usually take up to 5 working days. Both types of light problems should be called into the City of Coquitlam.

Dust Control on Gravel Roads and Lanes

The City looks after putting down dust control during the summer months. This is usually done if there has been 10 days of dry weather and another 10 days of dry weather is predicted.

Grading of Gravel Roads and Lanes

The City regularly inspects and grades gravel roads and lanes. Bad weather can often cause the surface to degrade faster than expected. This will result in potholes and ruts.

Signs Down, Missing or Vandalized

Before calling, please note the type of sign involved. This helps to determine a priority for repairing the sign.

Sightline Obstructions

Sightline obstructions are hazards that block the view for traffic or pedestrians. The most common is overgrown vegetation. Residents and property owner are responsible for avoiding hazards on their property.

Tips:

Maintain a height of 2.45m (8 feet) for all vegetation

Trim plants so that sign faces are always in clear view

Check with the City before building new fences along the road

Make sure there is 6 feet of clearance over top of sidewalks and pathways.

City staff carry out routine inspections. At this time, if any hazards are found, property owners will be notified in writing. If you come across a sightline obstruction, please report it.

Sidewalk and Walkway Hazards

The City maintains a vast network of sidewalks and walkways. They are regularly inspected for hazards such as trip potential, obstructions, water ponding, and vegetation.

Hazards put the safety and property of individuals at risk. We encourage you to report any sidewalk safety concerns you may have. Remember it is better to be safe then sorry.

Snow & Ice

If snow or icing conditions are forecasted, the City mobilizes it's fleet of trucks. Trucks may spray down a brine solutions to prevent ice. Brine is a mixture of salt and water which will stick to the road and prevent ice formation. If snowing, salt is layed down along with plowing to clear the roads. After a heavy snow fall, it may take up to 48 hours to clear roads. The City clears roads in an order based on the size and use. Arterial collection and bus routes are plowed first. Local roads and lanes are considered secondary.

In the event of cold temperatures or snow, be Winter Wise.

Pavement Rehabilitation Program

Coquitlam has a pavement rehabilitation program that prioritizes and determines the best strategy for renewing streets. Development of the annual program is a rigorous process that considers the condition of the pavement, planned street improvements, underground utility repairs, maintenance issues, safety issues, impacts to residents and planned years in advance.

Various treatments are applied to roads scheduled for rehabilitation, including:

Patching - to repair potholes that occur, normally after harsh winter conditions
Crack Sealing - to keep water from damaging the road’s structural base
Asphalt Overlay - an application of a thin asphalt layer on top of the existing road
Road Reconstruction - removal of old road surface, reconstruction of gravel road base and new asphalt pavement surface

Roads that have high vehicle volumes and greater speeds have a higher paving priority for safety reasons. The location of arterial streets and truck routes are shown in the map below.

Annual paving of local residential streets are normally grouped in neighbourhoods to reduce construction costs and impacts. Other local streets in poor condition are also assessed and scheduled for paving by need.

Truck Route Map

Local Area Service - Road Improvement Requests

Residents interested in adding street improvements not currently budgeted can petition the City on a 90% homeowner/10% City cost-share basis through a local area service petition process.

Types of improvements include:

Concrete curbs and gutters
Sidewalks (where feasible)
Street lighting
Street and back alley/lane paving including road widening
Traffic Calming

Procedure
To initiate a "local area service" in a neighbourhood, on a specific street, or in an area:

Contact Public Work Liaison to obtain per metre current construction rates to be used as rough estimate only.
Interested resident conducts a "straw" poll of the street or area to establish the level of interest before official petitioning process can begin.
It is recommended that most property owners be approached to provide a reliable survey.
Properties polled should include all properties either fronting or with flankage on the street involved.
If there is a majority interest, then the City will obtain a cost estimate for the work and proceed with the process as described in detail below.
Priority is given to areas where repaving is planned.
The current cost sharing is 90% homeowner and 10% City.

Approved Projects

If the "straw poll" vote shows a majority of owners interested the City proceeds with following petition process:

"Official Petition" is mailed out to each property owner in area involved, who will benefit from the project with a deadline date to respond.
Detailed scope of work done for work quoting exact cost for each property shown on Official Petition form sent to each property owner in area involved.
Only replies received are considered for the vote.
The "Official Petition" is approved if at least 2/3 of those property owners who respond are in favour of the work.
Report is provided to Council showing results and recommending approval or rejection depending upon results.
If 2/3 of responding owners approval is received, a Charges Bylaw is submitted for Council consideration binding ALL property owners to individual costs whether they agreed to the original petition or not.
Proposed work is tendered and awarded to contractor for completion.
In the following year, the owner of each property is sent an invoice for full amount and can either pay lump sum or opt for payment, with interest, over fifteen years added to annual property tax bill.

For more information about the Local Area Service process, please contact the Public Works Liaison:

604-927-3515.