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Tampa officials unveil new equipment, expands paving crews to finish road improvement projects faster

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Published  September 16, 2024 4:52pm EDT
Tampa
FOX 13 News

New paving machine to help fix Tampa's roads

Kylie Jones reports

TAMPA, Fla. - Potholes and bumpy roads are part of the daily commute for many drivers around Tampa. The city said the top complaint it receives is about road conditions.

On Monday, the city rolled out new equipment and announced it’s expanding its paving crew to get these road improvement projects finished faster.

"Over 40% of Tampa streets are in fair to poor condition, and they only get worse when it rains," Vik Bhide, the City of Tampa’s mobility director, said.

READ: Major FDOT projects to improve road safety in Tampa Bay area begin

The city unveiled a new paving machine, which is expected to help fast track paving projects around Tampa. City officials said they’ve invested more than $2 million in road improvement equipment this year.

The city also announced it’s expanding its paving crew to be able to bring more paving projects in-house, instead of contracting projects out.

"By bringing these paving projects in-house, it allows us to get them done much quicker," Tampa Mayor Jane Castor said.

Castor said this will also help complete paving projects at around half the cost, saving the city millions of dollars.

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"In the last five years, we have paved in-house 147 miles of roadway throughout our city," Castor said. "This year alone, we've paved 40 miles."

The city hopes this $700,000 paving machine and increased manpower will pave the way to doubling the city’s paving capacity. City mobility officials said paving projects have hit some roadblocks recently, due to the weather.

"When we see rains, especially heavy rains in a short duration, they really do a number on our streets," Bhide said. "And, where streets already have big potholes or are cracked, those things propagate even further."

Bhide said the weather has impacted the paving schedule and the staffing for these projects.

"But this same team, or some of the same team, also helps with patching potholes and things like that," he said. "So, we have to re-divert and redirect these resources elsewhere."

READ: These aging bridges will be updated, replaced with the help of $5 billion in federal funding

The city said this is another reason why the in-house expansion and investment is so important.

City officials said some of the paving projects on deck include projects at Ballast Point, south of Gandy, Temple Crest and Morgan Street. The mayor said the Community Investment Tax has contributed to funding for road improvement projects.

The CIT is on the ballot in the November election, and up for a vote on whether to extend the tax for another period of time. Castor said the CIT would continue to allocate money towards future road improvement projects.

The city encourages residents to report road issues to its Fix it Fast program.

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