Road Maintenance

Is In The Weeds This Year

To the Editor:

When the budget finally passed — with a tax increase — was the “town” side so far reduced that we can’t get the road side weeds cut back this year?

Here on Walnut Tree Hill Road, the banks of weeds have obliterated the road edge, hanging into the travel lane by a foot or more. People who walk along the road can’t move close to the curbing — dangerous on this road that sees heavy traffic. In some areas the weeds partially block the driver’s line of sight, and many drivers are driving closer to the yellow line because the weeds hang out so far.

Voters were warned that without a substantial tax increase town services would be adversely affected. At the same time money was “found,” despite declining enrollment, to ease the cut in the education budget. Road safety should be a priority, not an afterthought, and as such there should always be sufficient monies to maintain roads, including cutting back the weeds.

Schools are used by only a few — the roads by everyone, so why isn’t there the same “found” money available to maintain them? One would hope that at least a portion of the outrageous taxes we pay here in Newtown would be used for our roads. It only seems right.

Betty Saunders Guarino

167 Walnut Tree Hill Road, Sandy Hook                   August 8, 2012