Kitchener’s King Street East makes CAA’s Worst Roads list

One of Kitchener’s busiest roads, King Street East, has made a pretty ominous list although it will likely surprise few who traverse it.

CAA announced its Worst Roads List on Thursday morning and King Street East was the third worst road in the organization’s western region.

The top two were Wharncliffe Road South in London and Radical Road in Port Dover while the rest of the top five included Quaker Street in Norwich and Wonderland Road which was also in London.

READ MORE: Hamilton’s Burlington Street East named Ontario’s worst road for a second year in a row in 2018

A year ago, there was not a single mention of any roads in Waterloo Region but back in 2017, Northfield Drive West in Waterloo, Weber Street East in Kitchener and Franklin Boulevard in Cambridge were among the five worst roads in CAA’s western region.

None of the roads in CAA’s western region garnered enough shame to make it onto the province’s top 10 list for 2019.

That list was headed up by Eglinton Avenue East in Toronto which has been under construction for years as a new LRT line is being built.

Number two on CAA’s list of worst roads was Riverdale Drive in Washago while another major Toronto road, Dufferin Street, was also in the top 10.

READ MORE: CAA South Central Ontario launches worst roads campaign for 2019

The list is compiled from votes cast by motorists, cyclists and pedestrians.

CAA says that streets from more than half (53 per cent) of municipalities from across the province were nominated.

While drivers (75 per cent) were a large majority of those who cast a ballot, 12 per cent of the ballots were cast by cyclists and a further 12 per cent came from pedestrians.

A vast majority (85 per cent) of those who selected a particular road for nomination blamed potholes or crumbling pavement while a further six per cent blamed congestion.