Reduce salt to cut down on potholes
A pothole looms at the intersection of Mill Dam Road and New York Avenue in Huntington. Credit: John Dunn
Everyone is complaining of the massive potholes and the lack of repairs ["Way too many potholes," In My Humble Opinion, June 1]. Our streets look like patchwork quilts and our curbs are rotting. The cause is our overabundant use of salt in the winter.
I have been to the West Coast on numerous occasions in the highest of snow elevations and in the towns hit the hardest by storms. Their streets are nearly perfect; they don't use salt. Sand will give traction, as will slower driving, to avoid skidding. Proper vehicle controls and proper street plowing could avoid the need for excessive salt and expensive pothole repair and road replacement.
It seems we have a dependence on salt, or is it part of a greater plan to keep the road repair cycle going? There are alternative solutions.
Paul Spina, Seaford
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