YOUR COMMENTS

For some of these freak rain events its cheaper to build roads to low standards and fix them when they fail than it is to build them to higher standards to begin with. But if a failure happens more often than once every 10 to 20 years that needs higher design/construction standards.
- Jim, Manchester

It appears that the road construction in rural areas does not properly include the neccessary drainage piping along the raodsides at critical points. They have repaved and graveled route 149 with washouts in the same areas yearly. Just paving over a poor base does is not the way to build roads, which seems to be a problem for NH.
- Mike, Raymond

Most of the washed-out roads are new or recently rebuilt.
When roads are built or re-built, crews fill the shoulders in with gravel. (Route 136, Greenfield to Peterboro was just rebuilt with stimulus funds.)
Parts of NH have many hills and streams (duh.). When heavy rains come, water runs off the asphalt onto the shoulders and down to the streams, carrying the gravel shoulder with it. After enough gravel is gone the new road follows.
Solution: plant grass in the shoulders.
- Fitz, Francestown

This storm hit so quickly, no one was expecting the damage it caused. Route 101 by Dublin Lake was completely flooded in one spot with all the water running off the hillside. There were literally streams of water running down the sides of roads, it's an awful mess in some spots. Thankfully, no one was injured with all the flash floods around the area. Good luck to all the crews working to get the roads repaired quickly!
- Karen, Harrisville