Whether you choose to cycle, walk, take public transit, or drive, we all depend on a safe and well-maintained street network to get around. It’s the responsibility of every city to make sure that residents have practical transportation choices. It’s why Saint John maintains City roads (1160 lane kilometres in total), city sidewalks (373 km), and all the infrastructure, maintenance, and painting that goes along with it.
Roadway maintenance
The Roadway Maintenance Service provides drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians with safe, functional roads and maintains accessibility of these roads through all seasons. This work includes pothole repair; asphalt patching and crack sealing; road resurfacing; plowing, salting and sanding; street cleaning; and maintenance of all retaining walls, guiderails, and medians.
Sidewalk maintenance
The City of Saint John works to provide sidewalks that are as safe and accessible as the streets. Sidewalk Maintenance Service is carried out from April–November, and involves maintenance of concrete, asphalt, and brick sidewalks and walkways; installation and maintenance of access ramps; maintenance of grass medians and other green spaces; and snow and ice control in the winter.
Pedestrian and traffic management
Saint John's Pedestrian and Traffic Management Service supports safe, efficient movement of all travellers, including vehicles, bicycles, and pedestrians. This effort includes maintenance of traffic and pedestrian lights, regulatory and informational signage, marked crossings, directional arrows, and line painting. The City paints 615 crosswalks annually, and 2600 other markings (arrows, stop bars etc.).
Crosswalks
Pedestrians are inherently more vulnerable on the roads than drivers, so it's extremely important that everyone—drivers and pedestrians—understands how to behave around crosswalks. Most drivers don’t realize that every single intersection is a crosswalk, whether it’s marked and painted or not. When a pedestrian is legally within a crosswalk (marked or not), drivers must yield so the pedestrian can cross safely.
Drivers, it's impossible for pedestrians to make sure you see them. It's your responsibility to always be aware of and watch for pedestrians in crosswalks—and to drive slowly enough that you can safely stop to let them cross. Pedestrians, when at a signalized intersection, only begin to cross when the signal shows the “walk” symbol.
Potholes and asphalt programs
When the City experiences large temperature fluctuations, potholes become a common hazard on our streets. They’re not only an inconvenience, but also can create a safety hazard and potential for property damage. The City of Saint John has many maintenance programs for asphalt repairs. The type of surface defect and the time of year will determine how and when the defect can be addressed.
The only surface defects that can be maintained during the winter months are potholes. The Winter Asphalt Maintenance Program is focused on identifying priority potholes and addressing them as resources and weather conditions permit.
During the Spring Blitz Program the City makes a consolidated effort to address all potholes throughout the City. The entire asphalt department puts all other asphalt work on hold—such as the overlay program and driveway apron reinstatements—until they’ve addressed all outstanding potholes, City-wide.
Other surface defects, such as delamination, alligator cracking, and seam separation cannot be done during the winter. The material needed for these repairs (called Sand Seal) requires a pavement temperature of at least 15 degrees Celsius. Once asphalt temperatures remain above 15 degrees (typically the end of June or beginning of July), the City starts the Sand Seal Blitz. All other surface defects are maintained throughout the construction season.
Repair requests are prioritized and planned in the work schedule for the Surface Maintenance Department. You can help! If you experience a pothole, please complete a service request form, call our Customer Service line at 506-658-4455, or email customer service to inform us of its location.