PAVEMENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM SAVES TAXPAYERS MONEY

A survey by the city of every street in Cape Girardeau to determine repair and replacement needs is about to be completed. The information gathered during the inspection of 1,500 city blocks now will be fed into a computer so that city officials can make some sense of it.

The survey for the city's new Pavement Management System is nearing completion after just two years of what was expected to be three years worth of work. Ultimately, the city will use the information to determine, among other things, priorities for street maintenance and improvements and to establish budgets for street work.

The Pavement Management System offers a sensible, well-planned approach to assuring that the city's street repairs and improvements are met in the years to come. Properly applied, the information should help assure that needed repairs are done in timely fashion before a street becomes too badly deteriorated and that repairs are not done to streets that aren't in need of repair.

Kevin McMeel, assistant public works director, said that identifying the need for repairs before a street is badly deteriorated is using tax dollars wisely. As he put it, "When you put $1 into a street that's still in fairly good condition, it's like putting $4 in when it's in really bad shape." We agree; with that approach Cape Girardeau taxpayers can be assured that money spent for street repairs is being appropriated wisely.

As McMeel said, too often the city has had to react to problems by paving badly deteriorated streets without fully knowing the reason for the streets' disrepair. The Pavement Management System should help identify reasons for street deterioration, and preventive measures can be taken to correct the problem at hand, thereby avoiding costly repairs in the future.

The survey involved physical inspection of each street by Emmett Baker Jr., the city's projects coordinator, and Howard Propst, city technician. The information was fed into a computer, which rated the streets on a scale of zero to 100 based on their deterioration. It also determined costs of available repair options and available funding. Armed with information of that type, city officials will better be able to establish budgets for street maintenance.

We foresee the Pavement Management System also playing an integral role in the city's street master plan by establishing priorities for repairs and improvements. And, information on repair needs and costs will be available on major arteries such as Mount Auburn, Perryville, Hopper and Bloomfield roads, Independence and Broadway. Conditions of those streets can be compared to conditions of streets that carry fewer vehicles, thereby allowing the city to put its street money where it most urgently is needed and where the most people will benefit.

The Pavement Management System should be an excellent tool for planning and spending. The many manhours put into the inspection and subsequent surveys and studies will prove to be time well spent.