Lauzon Parkway tops CAA's annual 'worst roads' list for southwestern Ontario

The annual list of ‘worst roads’ across the province is out and while no Windsor roads cracked the top 10 in the province, four of five are considered by CAA as the worst in southwestern Ontario.

“It serves as a very important reminder of the impact that infrastructure has in the daily lives of Ontarians,” said Nadia Todorova, the executive director of the residential and civil construction alliance of Ontario. “We think that the campaign is incredibly important because it raises that awareness about the state of road infrastructure in the province.”

On the regional list of worst roads, there are a handful of usual suspects:

• Lauzon Parkway
• Tecumseh Road East
• University Avenue West
• Sandwich Street

Lauzon Parkway was listed for it’s state of repair, according to Todorova, but also for its missing features.

“Is there cycling infrastructure? And that was one of the things that was really emphasized is that there was kind of poor cycling infrastructure in place which makes the road you know not accessible for a huge chunk of Ontarians,” said Todorova.

The good news is most of those roads are slated for work as part of the City of Windsor’s 10-year capital budget.

A complete overhaul of University Avenue West is currently in the planning phase and Sandwich Street will be completely re-done as part of the Gordie Howe Bridge project.

The City of Windsor was unable to provide an interview Tuesday.

But council is taking steps to improve infrastructure with an asset management plan and an extra levy on this year’s taxes to help the city repair roads faster.

“It points attention to those to those areas and hopefully municipal officials are listening and you know, they take action,” Todorova said.

This year’s list marks the 20th anniversary of the campaign, which asks Ontario residents to vote on the roads in the province that are in most need of repair.

According to the Cost of Poor Roads in Canada Study commissioned by CAA in 2021, 49 per cent of non-highway kilometres in Ontario are rated ‘below good.’

Vehicle damage sustained from a pothole can also be costly. According to CAA, some fixes can range from $300 to $6,000. On average, drivers can incur around $1,250 in extra maintenance costs over a car’s lifespan due to poor roads, said the report.

Top 10 CAA Worst Roads in Ontario:

1. Barton St East, Hamilton
2. Eglinton Avenue West, Toronto
3. County Road 49, Prince Edward County
4. Carling Avenue, Ottawa
5. Finch Avenue West, Toronto
6. Laclie Street, Orillia
7. Steeles Avenue East, Toronto
8. Aberdeen Avenue, Hamilton
9. Lakeshore Boulevard East, Toronto
10. Hurontario Street, Mississauga