As the weather warms and snow begins to melt, the condition of gravel roads in the Rural Municipality (RM) of Portage la Prairie can become a challenge for drivers. Garth Asham, the councillor for Ward 1 and Deputy Reeve of the RM, is urging residents to be cautious as they travel these roads in the coming weeks.
"Up until now, our roads are in really good condition," Asham said. "But with the expected snowfall today and Friday, it's going to change the condition of our roads quite a bit. We just have to be prepared."
Asham advises that drivers should anticipate changing conditions and always drive to the road conditions.
"Keep your eyes on the road and adjust your speed to the conditions. Our Public Works staff are very efficient. If there's a problem with a road, we either throw some gravel on it or send out a grader to blade it. If the conditions are right, graders can fix ruts or holes, but they can't blade if it's too damp."
Looking back at the winter, Asham described it as fairly mild, with less snow than usual.
"Our staff stayed right on top of it. We try to make sure roads are clear so people can get to work, daycare, or medical appointments. We know how important it is to get those roads cleared quickly."
Looking ahead, Asham mentioned that provincial work on Highway 227 is in the works.
"I know from correspondence with the province to 227 is going to get some work done to it. I'm sure they're going to let the RM have some input. So right now they're up and down here with big trucks, and they're making a huge pile of crush rock over on 227 and 240 so there are indications that there's going to be some work done on 227 and we hope it meets the expectations of everybody, because 227 when we get moisture here, it's a provincial road, and it gets very, very tough to navigate."
Residents are reminded to stay alert and follow updates on road conditions as spring progresses. Asham stresses that students have to get to school, and the importance to being responsive to RM routes that the school buses take after winter storms.
