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Highway
Division
Department of Public Works
Location:
1385 Washington Street
Tel. (508-660-7328) Fax (508-850-9612)
Bob LeBlanc
Superintendent
Drew
Hand
Highway, Parks & Cemetery Asst. Superintendent
Fred
Boyden
Foreman
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| The
Highway Division, with nine (9) full-time employees, is constantly
striving to achieve a high standard of services to the residents of
Walpole. From street sweeping, patching of potholes and trenches,
pavement markings, repairs to sidewalks, cleaning of catch basins
and drains and snow & ice operations, the department is always
functioning to capacity.
In
addition to the awarding of a catch basin contract on a yearly basis
for the cleaning of all catch basins and drains in town, Highway
personnel also clean catch basins and drains especially during the
fall season when leaves clog up drains and after the winter when
excess sand clogs up drains.
Street
sweeping begins in the spring after the danger of snow has passed
and the weather starts to get mild. With only one (1) sweeper and
operator, it usually takes until at least July before all the streets
are swept. This is especially true when an accumulation of sand
from severe snow & ice conditions produces an excess amount
of sand on the roadways.
The
patching of potholes and water trenches with Type I asphalt is done
on an ongoing basis during mild and warm weather. When potholes
and trenches open up during the winter months, temporary patching
with cold patch is used until the hot mix is available in the spring.
Sidewalk
repairs are performed by Highway personnel, i.e. replacement of
broken sections. When Chapter 90 funding is available, new sidewalks
are installed at various locations on the advice of the Sidewalk
Committee. |
If you have a problem with street light outages, call NSTAR at 1-800-ST
LITES
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The
Highway Division has begun to replace existing street signs with
the new blue signs. Each year, we will replace between thirty (30)
to forty (40) signs. With replacement costs at a premium, this is
all that our budget will allow per year. All of the signs on the
main streets have been replaced and we are now working on all side
streets. In addition, stop signs, replacement of signs due to vandalism,
new posts, traffic control signs and school signs all fall under
the jurisdiction of the Highway Division and are installed on an
ongoing basis at the direction of the Safety Officer, Warren Goodwin.
The
entire Department of Public Works, along with private contractors,
plow approximately Four hundred sixty-five (465) roadways and forty-six
(46) miles of sidewalks. Snowplowing services are extended to all
roadways, whether or not they are accepted or private, within the
town, as well as to all town-owned buildings and schools. |
Snowstorm
Information
Vehicle parking on roadways during snowstorms is not allowed. If
a vehicle impedes the services of snowplows in the operation of
clearing roadways, said vehicle will be towed at the owner's expense.
As a point of interest, it should be noted that there is a by-law
stating that snow may not be thrown out on a public way, i.e. sidewalks
or roadways. It would be helpful if homeowners would shovel out
drains and fire hydrants keeping them as free from snow and ice
as possible. Sand and salt is available to Walpole homeowners only
at the Town Garage, located at 1385 Washington Street, Monday -
Friday, between the hours of 7:30 AM - 4:00 PM. Please do not come
during snow storms as it will impede D.P.W. personnel and private
contractors in entering and exiting the garage to engage in snowplowing
operations.
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