Sudbury city staff struggle to find line paint that will last on local streets

Since the province placed restrictions on the type of paint that can be used on Ontario's roadways several years ago, staff in Sudbury have been trying to find a paint that will last. (File)

Sudbury — Since the province placed restrictions on the type of paint that can be used on Ontario's roadways several years ago, staff in Sudbury have been trying to find a paint that will last.

Judging by how quickly the lines disappear, local motorists can tell you it has been a losing battle.

"Line painting continues to be an issue," said Ward 12 Coun. Joscelyne Landry-Altmann at a recent city council meeting. "It doesn't last very long."

She cited lines painted on Paris Street highlighting where cycling lanes are located – those disappeared within a few months.

"Are we looking at any other options?" Landry-Altmann asked. "Is there anything that might last longer than one year?"

Line painting has been an issue since 2012 when the province mandated the use of more environmentally-friendly products for use on the roads.

Randy Halverson, the city's manager of operations, said finding paints that last more than a season has been an ongoing issue since then.

"We've looked at several different products," Halverson said. "We've done several different tests of line painting products."

Northern communities are more affected by the change, he said, because the large amounts of sand and salt used in the winter maintenance help erase the paint quickly -- and new types of asphalt mixes contain oils that further erode the paint and erases the lines.

"It is extremely challenging in the north," Halverson said. "We are always looking at different products."

Over the past few years, he said they targeted certain roads for multiple coats of paint in key areas.

"The past few years, we've painted roads like The Kingsway twice," he said.

More recently, he said a new paint mix they’re using this year is "giving us better performance."

The new product and repeated painting will continue until a better paint solution is found, he said.