HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

149th GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 12

RECOGNIZING THE NEED FOR CONSISTENT AND PREVENTATIVE SUBDIVISION ROADWAY MAINTENANCE BY THE DELAWARE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION.

WHEREAS , the Delaware Department of Transportation is responsible for maintaining subdivision roads within unincorporated areas of the State of Delaware; and

  WHEREAS , there are insufficient funds to completely resurface subdivision roads in need of repair; and

WHEREAS , preventative maintenance can prolong the life of road surfaces to avoid complete resurfacing; and

WHEREAS , the Delaware Department of Transportation currently maintains subdivision roads on a "complaint driven" system in which road issues are reported into the Transportation Management Center (“TMC”) on an as needed basis; and

WHEREAS , a resident may report a road condition to the TMC resulting in a repair crew being dispatched to the reported location, unaware of other nearby unreported road conditions that could be remedied at the same time; and 

WHEREAS , another resident may have to make another call to the TMC to request the repair of a road issue resulting in the dispatch of another separate crew when it could have previously been remedied; and 

WHEREAS , the Delaware Department of Transportation's current TMC process results in piecemeal repairs and inefficient use of labor hours and materials.

  NOW, THEREFORE:

BE IT RESOLVED, by the House of Representatives and the Senate of the 149th General Assembly of the State of Delaware, that the Secretary of Transportation is encouraged to create recommendations for the Delaware Department of Transportation that will ensure maximum productivity and efficiency to achieve the goal of consistent and preventative subdivision roadway maintenance through the proactive dispatching of crews to proactively review each mile of every subdivision road in subdivisions older than 10 years for purpose of remedying all easily repairable issues on a suggested annual basis depending on the age, usage, and condition of the roadway.

SYNOPSIS

The Delaware Department of Transportation currently uses a system to repair subdivision roadways in which a unit is dispatched only when a complaint is lodged with the Transportation Management Center. In order to avoid piecemeal repairs that waste valuable resources, the Delaware Department of Transportation will be directed by the Secretary of Transportation to review each subdivision roadway on a consistent basis that is in any subdivision that is at least 10 years old.