Voting opened Tuesday on the Canadian Automobiles Association's campaign to determine the worst road in Ontario.

The CAA worst roads campaign is underway to determine Ontarios troubled roads. Photo courtesy of CAA.

“When you talk about bad roads, its something that frustrates a lot of Ontarians,” John Ennis, a government relations specialist for CAA, told thedailyplanet.com. Now in its ninth year, past campaigns have garnered up to 10,000 votes, he said.

“The reason why, is [bad roads have] a high cost. If you hit a pothole and you have to get a shock replaced it could run up to $300.”

Ennis said once the list is compiled, CAA lobbies with municipal and provincial politicians to improve road conditions. He said past campaigns have successfully led to repairs.

“90 per cent of the roads that have appeared on CAA's worst roads list . . . have been repaired or are slated to be repaired.”

Ennis said one target of the campaign is to encourage a redirection of government funding.

“The government of Ontario right now collects approximately $2.3 billion annually in gas tax revenue and none of that revenue, at the current time, is dedicated for road and highway improvement . . . it’s a shock to most people.”

Ennis said once voters have compiled the list the Ontario Road Builders' Association verifies that the roads need repairing.

Rob Bradford, executive director of the Ontario Road Builders' Association, said a team checks road conditions by looking at potholes, cracks, and below-the-surface drainage problems.

“I think the main point of the campaign is just to raise public and political awareness about the fact that we need to invest in maintaining our roads and pavements,” said Bradford.

“I think it has been very successful at doing that, in terms of elevating infrastructure as a priority over the past 10 years.”

The campaign runs until Apr. 24  and anyone can vote online. 

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