Voting opens for CAA’s worst roads in Ontario for 2022

Ontario residents can now vote for the most terrible streets in their city as part of the yearly campaign, CAA’s Worst Roads.

“Tired of swerving around potholes? Worried about your safety as a cyclist or pedestrian?” CAA wrote in a press release Tuesday kicking off the campaign.

Nominations can be made online until April 19.

CAA said once voting is closed, it will partner with the Ontario Road Builders’ Association to verify and compile a list of the top 10 worst roads in the province, as well as top 5 worst roads regionally.

“The regional lists will help shine further light on the state of local roads in municipalities across Ontario,” CAA said.

For 2021, the worst road came from Prince Edward County — Victoria Road, making its debut on the list.

In second place that year was Carling Avenue in Ottawa, then Barton Street East in Hamilton, County Road 49 in Prince Edward County, and in fifth, Eglinton Avenue East in Toronto.

Regionally, in Toronto, Eglinton Avenue East and West came in the top two spots, followed by Weston Road, Dufferin Street and Bathurst Street.

CAA said through its research, more than 80 per cent of Ontarians said poor road conditions such as cracks in the pavement and potholes are still the most common issues for roads in their neighbourhoods.

Pothole damage to a vehicle can cost from $300 to $6,000, depending on the car model, CAA said.

“We know that through CAA’s research, almost 72 per cent of Ontarians are venting about the state of our roads to either their spouses, friends or co-workers and not always to local government officials,” said Teresa Di Felice from CAA South Central Ontario.