VDOT Cleared Major Roads but Ignored Neighborhoods – Time to Complain?

[Anonymous]

Whatever company VDOT contracts with for our neighborhood has done an amazing job for 15 years. Regular plowing and I can always get out to the main roads, even early in a storm.

Go a couple neighborhoods over and it's a whole different story.

Not sure why they allow so much inconsistency, but I sure hope whoever does my street never ever changes.

[Anonymous]

Any luck calling your supervisors to advocate for you guys with VDOT problems and unplowed streets?

Walkenshaw, Berman, Lusk, and I can’t remember the other districts' supervisors off the top of my head.
I'd be on the phone with them 2x a day pestering them .

[Anonymous]

VDOT clears smaller roads, not the county?

[Anonymous]

In Loudoun, but I’d call the response to this storm a glaring VDOT failure.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:VDOT clears smaller roads, not the county?

Yes, VDOT is responsible for all public roads. Private roads are the responsibility of whatever association owns them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My neighborhood was plowed on Monday and Tuesday.

Oh look, the “mom who thinks other moms use school as childcare but who actually want their kids to be educated” has joined the chat. Hi there!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have complained they haven't done our side streets off Kirby in 22101. I am also upset because trash can't be picked up. Vdot is bad.

Dragged our trash out to the main road (quite a ways) for pick up. It was a great reminder of reasons beyond aesthetics to stay in shape.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
We've lived here 35 years. This is all normal operating procedure for after a snow. Same old, same old.

The PP is correct. The sidewalks have to be absolutely clean with not one speck of snow or ice on them. Then school can resume.

This is not how they nothings in the upper midwest and northeast. At this rate, our children will be out of school for two weeks.

Welcome to NoVA!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Whatever company VDOT contracts with for our neighborhood has done an amazing job for 15 years. Regular plowing and I can always get out to the main roads, even early in a storm.

Go a couple neighborhoods over and it's a whole different story.

Not sure why they allow so much inconsistency, but I sure hope whoever does my street never ever changes.

Likely there's a labor shortage.

I think it is partially explained by increasing social pressure for everyone's kids to go to college rather than do something so unimportant as drive trucks to clear roads.

In that case you take the contractors you can get. The trash companies defended poor service these past few years by saying they had labor shortages. My particular company cut us from twice a week to once a week and raised the price. I haven't seen many complaints about missed pickups on NextDoor since they reduced their commitments.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Whatever company VDOT contracts with for our neighborhood has done an amazing job for 15 years. Regular plowing and I can always get out to the main roads, even early in a storm.

Go a couple neighborhoods over and it's a whole different story.

Not sure why they allow so much inconsistency, but I sure hope whoever does my street never ever changes.

Likely there's a labor shortage.

I think it is partially explained by increasing social pressure for everyone's kids to go to college rather than do something so unimportant as drive trucks to clear roads.

In that case you take the contractors you can get. The trash companies defended poor service these past few years by saying they had labor shortages. My particular company cut us from twice a week to once a week and raised the price. I haven't seen many complaints about missed pickups on NextDoor since they reduced their commitments.

PP here, and we have American too. Good point about the labor shortage.

[Anonymous]

Usually by now we would have had a day or two, sunny and in the 40s to melt and dry the edges and patches that the plows didn't get. There also would have been one snow instead of two. That and this rare continued cold is stalling everything.

[Anonymous]

It hasn't been this bad before, even cul-de-sac areas used to get a plow at least once. This time even roads near schools aren't plowed. Everything on the map that's supposed to be contractor driven is not touched wherever I happened to be. In the meanwhile DC roads and sidewalks are clean while affluent suburbs collecting more and more tax revenue based on property values cannot get reliable contractors.

[Anonymous]

Only one of the three roads leading to McLean HS were cleared. The neighborhoods immediately surround the HS were also not cleared. It was treacherous for walkers AND for the teen drivers and buses. (I live on one of the roads leading to the HS). We complained to VDOT and to Jimmy Bierman office asking them JUST to focus on the roads leading to the school. Not much happened…apart from a couple of kids falling and one car accident

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Only one of the three roads leading to McLean HS were cleared. The neighborhoods immediately surround the HS were also not cleared. It was treacherous for walkers AND for the teen drivers and buses. (I live on one of the roads leading to the HS). We complained to VDOT and to Jimmy Bierman office asking them JUST to focus on the roads leading to the school. Not much happened…apart from a couple of kids falling and one car accident

Why didn’t you contact state legislators and Youngkin since VDOT is the one responsible for the roads and it is a state agency?

[Anonymous]

Also, it’s above freezing now so get out there and shovel the roads even if it’s not your responsibility. You can still complain to the state but might want to seize this “warmth” to fix the problem.