Utility companies digging up the roads

tis me

Hi. Not sure if this is the right forum for this but it looks like the place where I would get the most knowledgeable responses.

As a cyclist around Dublin I'm really noticing the terrible state of the roads and footpaths after the utilities/council/builders have dug them up for a job. In most cases they seem to just carelessly dump some asphalt into the hole after the job is complete with little regard to keeping the new surface level with the old surface leading to either big bumps or pot holes in the road which are particularly dangerous/annoying for cyclists. Also, road markings are never repainted on the new surface.

Footpaths are the same with no replacement of paving stones or curb stones after a job and a similar careless dump of asphalt which aesthetically looks bad and inevitably crumbles away after a while and leads to dangerous footpaths for pedestrians.

Does the council not uphold any sort of standards on the contractors doing these jobs? Is there any inspection at all of works after completion? Surely the council has an interest in enforcing some sort of standard on these contractors as they will eventually have to repair the roads and footpaths? Or are contractors just given free reign on how they finish a job (as seems evident).

Anyone with an insight of how this works at council level?

fionnsci

A footpath outside my house was dug up recently with a horrible grey sloping blob put in place of the section dug up. Looks appalling and unsafe, was wondering who to complain to. Definitely a major issue cycling on the road too.

Sam Russell

Footpaths are the responsibility of the local council, I believe.

If they have been dug up and not reinstated that is the responsibility of the crowd that dug it up. Complain to the council, and get your neighbours to complain as well. If you have a residents group, get them to complain. Also complain to your local councillors (all of them) and get your neighbours to do so as well.

It is the squeaky wheel that gets the oil.

tis me

So it would appear that the council are not upholding any standards whatsoever on the contractors/builders/utilities making a mess of the roads and footpaths. Nor are they doing any inspections I would guess. Seems crazy that this is the case given they are responsible for the upkeep. The roads are being dug up all over the city these days with all the building work going on and the public roads and footpaths are being left behind in a dreadful state. Maddening to see this happening on a daily basis all over the city and I suppose it will be our taxes used to fix the mess in the end.

A simple (and enforced/inspected) rule of leaving a road/path in the same condition as before the work could sort this problem out fairly quickly. Is that too much to expect of Dublin City Council?

machiavellianme

tis me wrote: »

So it would appear that the council are not upholding any standards whatsoever on the contractors/builders/utilities making a mess of the roads and footpaths. Nor are they doing any inspections I would guess. Seems crazy that this is the case given they are responsible for the upkeep. The roads are being dug up all over the city these days with all the building work going on and the public roads and footpaths are being left behind in a dreadful state. Maddening to see this happening on a daily basis all over the city and I suppose it will be our taxes used to fix the mess in the end.

A simple (and enforced/inspected) rule of leaving a road/path in the same condition as before the work could sort this problem out fairly quickly. Is that too much to expect of Dublin City Council?

I would argue that it should be restored to "as new" condition and maintained for a minimum of 6 months (to account for settling in). If it's full of potholes to begin with, restoring it to potholes isn't much use. The resultant upgrade can be considered a courtesy fee for discommodating other users for the period of the works.

tis me

machiavellianme wrote: »

I would argue that it should be restored to "as new" condition and maintained for a minimum of 6 months (to account for settling in). If it's full of potholes to begin with, restoring it to potholes isn't much use. The resultant upgrade can be considered a courtesy fee for discommodating other users for the period of the works.

Indeed, that would be ideal. But any sort of standard to begin with would be nice.

I'm still amazed that the council are letting a free for all happen out there. Does anyone have an insight into the council workings on this? Is there really no inspection system in place?

Sam Russell

If you have not complained to the council, why come on here complaining.

Complain to the council first, and then to all your local councillors. Then get your neighbours to do the same. That is what will work.

It is the utilities job to reinstate as it was before. The asphalt is temporary and a final finish should be completed in a reasonable time. If it is not good enough, then complain to the council. They can only react when they know what is wrong.

tis me

Sam Russell wrote: »

If you have not complained to the council, why come on here complaining.

Complain to the council first, and then to all your local councillors. Then get your neighbours to do the same. That is what will work.

It is the utilities job to reinstate as it was before. The asphalt is temporary and a final finish should be completed in a reasonable time. If it is not good enough, then complain to the council. They can only react when they know what is wrong.

I came on here asking if anyone had any insight into how the council manages this process - inspections, minimum standards etc.

It shouldn't be up to me to canvas my neighbourhood each and every time the roads are dug up around here.

It is glaringly obvious that the utilities are not reinstating the roads/paths to anything like a decent standard all over the city. I'm just surprised that the council allow this to continue.

Sam Russell

tis me wrote: »

I came on here asking if anyone had any insight into how the council manages this process - inspections, minimum standards etc.

It shouldn't be up to me to canvas my neighbourhood each and every time the roads are dug up around here.

It is glaringly obvious that the utilities are not reinstating the roads/paths to anything like a decent standard all over the city. I'm just surprised that the council allow this to continue.

The footpath has been dug up four or five times over the few years by Eir, Bord Gais Networks, ESB Networks, water meters - some more than once. On every occasion, the footpath was returned to a good state.

Further down our road, flood mitigation work was carried out by Dublin City Council where they installed extra shores to improve drainage. Surprisingly, they did not do the reinstatement very well at all, leaving black asphalt which is normally temporary. I must get onto them.

roadmaster

Do the utility's not have to get a road opening licence and also give a bond when excavating roads and the bond is only returned when the council inspect?

Sam Russell

roadmaster wrote: »

Do the utility's not have to get a road opening licence and also give a bond when excavating roads and the bond is only returned when the council inspect?

Well, yes that might be, but what if it is the council themselves fail to reinstate correctly?

My experience is the council is the biggest offender.

roadmaster

Sam Russell wrote: »

Well, yes that might be, but what if it is the council themselves fail to reinstate correctly?

My experience is the council is the biggest offender.

Unfortunately your correct the councils can be very bad especially if they use cold tar. For some reason they cant seam to level it in certain county's. What you said above is the only way to get something sorted as the County Councillors despite what people think do have some say with the councils. Maybe they just keep annoying and calling the local area engineer until he gives in and does something.