Nearly half of government-operated N.B. highways in poor or very poor condition: auditor general

The New Brunswick auditor general says nearly half of the province’s highways are in poor condition.

New Brunswick’s auditor general released a report Tuesday that says improvements need to be made to the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure’s systems and practices.

Auditor general Paul Martin’s report on highway safety states the department is mandated to “provide and support sustainable infrastructure that allows for the safe and efficient movement of people and goods.”

The department is also responsible for the planning, construction, maintenance and management of provincial highways, including signage, lighting, pavement markings and the regulation of speed limits.

The audit found:

• no formalized strategic plan regarding highway safety
• the department has not completed 41 per cent of required audits on P3-operated highways
• 34 per cent of reported highway safety concerns have not been addressed
• lack of targeted repair times for department-operated highways
• capital project selection decisions made without adequate documented rationale
• no measures or targets related to collision and fatality reduction

“The audit covered the period from April 1, 2023 – December 31, 2024. Information outside of this period was also collected and examined as deemed necessary. As part of our work, we interviewed departmental staff and reviewed relevant policy, legislation and other documentation supporting the Department’s systems and processes,” reads the report.

Fatality rate

The report states highway safety was selected as a topic because, according to Transport Canada’s Canadian Motor Vehicle Traffic Collision Statistics for 2023, New Brunswick reports the highest per capita fatality rate among all Canadian provinces.

“However, as at the time of our audit, the Department had not developed a provincial highway safety strategy to reduce the number of fatal and serious injury collisions on highways,” reads the report.

According to the audit, there have been between 4,482 and 5,635 highway collisions per year in the last 10 years.

“While the number of injuries in collisions on highways decreased by 17% over the 10 years, the number of fatalities has increased by 29%,” reads the report.

Highway conditions

Martin’s audit found “nearly half of department-operated highways are in poor or very poor condition.”

That classification is determined by collecting data on asphalt and chipseal highway surface. The roughness and distress data is used to classify the highway’s condition as very good, good, fair, poor, or very poor.

A highway in poor condition is considered in need of major repair.

Snow removal

The department’s Winter Maintenance Service Policy specifies requirements for winter snow removal by highway classification.

“The Winter Maintenance Service Policy requires the Department to monitor compliance with the levels of service to ensure consistent application across the province and to report on compliance annually,” reads the report.

“However, the Department informed us they do not monitor or report on the achievement of their stated targets.”

The auditor recommended the department monitor and report on the level of snow removal service to ensure it is consistently completed within the specified timeframes across the province.

Highway repairs

The report notes the department lacks target repair times for maintenance on highways it manages.

Adding there is “inadequate documented rationale for changes to asphalt and chip seal projects selected for the department’s capital plan.”

The report also states there are “over $204 million worth of maintenance tasks outstanding with 55% being categorized by the Department as high priority.”

“We also noted there are almost $30 million of identified maintenance repairs that have not been categorized and therefore making it challenging for the Department to prioritize timing of repairs,” reads the report.

Recommendations

The auditor general made 24 recommendations to the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure to improve planning, monitoring and maintenance processes. The auditor says the recommendations were accepted by the department.

Reaction

Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) Atlantic advocacy and community relations director Julia Kent said she is not surprised with the findings in the report.

She said a new study done by CAA found that Canadians are paying $3 billion every year in higher vehicle operating costs due to poor road infrastructure.

“That equates to about $126 per Canadian on average. That’s a little lower in New Brunswick, but it is having a direct impact on the driver and on the pocketbooks of the driver,” she said.

With files from CTV Atlantic’s Avery MacRae.

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