Hampstead Leaders Clash Over Ellerdale Road Repair Strategy
A heated debate has erupted in Hampstead over the best approach to repairing the notoriously dilapidated Ellerdale Road, with former mayor Bill Steinberg and current Mayor Jeremy Levi presenting opposing views on the town's nearly $1-million repaving project.
The Road's Troubled History
Ellerdale Road, named one of the worst roads on the island of Montreal last year by CAA-Québec, has become infamous for its hazardous conditions. The road surface is riddled with deep potholes that force drivers to swerve into oncoming traffic to avoid damage to their vehicles. The situation has deteriorated to the point where hubcaps regularly detach from cars navigating the uneven surface.
The roadwork project, awarded to Roxboro Excavation earlier this month, comes after approximately a decade of miscommunication between the Town of Hampstead and the City of Montreal. While Hampstead maintains responsibility for the road surface, Montreal manages a critical 750-mm water main buried beneath it. This jurisdictional complexity delayed repairs as Hampstead sought assurances it wouldn't be held liable if roadwork caused the aging pipe to rupture.
Divergent Perspectives on Infrastructure Solutions
Former mayor Bill Steinberg, who served from 2005, argues strongly against the current plan to keep the concrete slab beneath the asphalt in place. "They're taking a cheap, fast fix and in the long run, it's not going to be good," Steinberg warned. "I'm not saying it's going to be back the way it is today, but it's not going to be acceptable."
Steinberg points to Hampstead's clay-rich soil as a fundamental problem when combined with concrete bases. He explains that as clay settles unevenly beneath rigid concrete slabs, it creates cavities that amplify vibrations from traffic, leading to accelerated degradation. His experience with Fleet Road, where similar issues were resolved by removing concrete and replacing it with crushed stone nearly two decades ago, informs his skepticism about the Ellerdale approach.
"Unless the town elects to remove the slab under Ellerdale, I believe the roadwork will be just a temporary fix and crews will have to return within two or three years to do the work all over again," Steinberg predicted.
The Current Administration's Defense
Mayor Jeremy Levi offers a starkly different perspective, emphasizing that engineering consultations guided the decision to preserve the concrete slab. "The decision to not replace the entirety of the concrete slab was because of what our engineers told us," Levi stated. "The difference between Ellerdale and Fleet is that Fleet has no water main."
Levi contends that the concrete slab serves a crucial protective function for the underground water infrastructure, shielding it from vibrations caused by vehicles. He insists that financial considerations didn't drive the decision, stating clearly: "This has nothing to do with financial constraints, cutting corners or not doing this properly."
The mayor expressed confidence that the repaired road would remain in good condition for at least fifteen years, with workers addressing deficiencies in the concrete where necessary rather than undertaking complete removal.
Expert Analysis and Historical Context
Engineering professor Éric Lachance-Tremblay provided context about Montreal's unusual road construction practices. "I work with about a dozen municipalities in my research, and in no case do we have concrete slabs underneath road surfaces," he noted, adding that this approach appears unique to the island of Montreal.
Lachance-Tremblay explained that concrete slabs beneath asphalt were common between the 1940s and 1970s during a period of rapid expansion, when concrete was viewed as a solid, durable base material. However, he acknowledged that "having concrete underneath asphalt isn't optimal in the long run" due to maintenance challenges and difficult removal processes compared to crushed stone alternatives.
Marc-Antoine Bélanger, speaking for the City of Montreal, confirmed that mixing concrete and asphalt is no longer standard practice when redoing roads. However, he noted that when work is performed on existing roads with concrete bases, municipalities typically keep the slabs in place while resurfacing the asphalt above—an approach similar to Hampstead's plan for Ellerdale Road.
The professor did acknowledge there might be validity to the argument that concrete slabs offer better protection for underground water infrastructure due to their water-resistant properties compared to crushed stone.
Financial and Practical Considerations
Steinberg expressed surprise at the relatively low $1-million price tag for the Ellerdale project, noting that estimates he received during his administration exceeded $3 million for work that included complete concrete removal. The former mayor's concern centers on what he perceives as a short-term solution that may prove more costly over time through repeated repairs.
As Hampstead moves forward with its repair strategy, the fundamental disagreement between current and former leadership highlights the complex balancing act municipalities face when addressing aging infrastructure: weighing immediate practical constraints against long-term durability, while managing both technical challenges and public expectations.
