City of Cape Girardeau

Street Maintenance & Repair

The Street Maintenance Division coordinates with the Community Development Department to maintain around 233 miles of streets and 22 miles of alleyways. This is roughly the same distance as a drive to St. Louis and back. General maintenance is done by the Street Division, while new construction and management of the Transportation Trust Fund program are handled by Community Development.   

To see all street repair information and a list of recent, current, and upcoming projects visit cityofcape.org/streets.

In addition to street repairs, the Street Maintenance Division: 

• Removes limb debris from City right-of-way after major storms
• Mows nearly 600 acres of right-of-way several times each year 
• Provides weed control around signs, guardrails, and poles
• Removes dead and diseased trees, and trims trees along City streets and alleys
• Operates two mechanical street sweepers
• Provides street inspections for right-of-way/excavation permits
• Evaluates more than 100 miles of street yearly to record pavement conditions
• Maintains and manages database for street pavement conditions
• Provides snow removal and pretreats roadways for winter weather

Pothole Patching

Pothole patching is especially needed after a heavy winter. Water tunnels under streets through defects caused by traffic, then freezes and expands making the pavement also expand and weaken. When the ice melts, there is sometimes a void left under the street. As traffic travels over the weakened pavement, it breaks and forms potholes.
 
During the summer and warmer months, potholes are patched using our pothole patching machine. This machine blows debris out of the hole, sprays in a tacky oil substance then sprays on aggregate. Loose gravel is then swept away and traffic can resume almost instantly. Unfortunately, this process works best during warmer months. During the cooler season, we go “old school” shoveling cold mix asphalt from the back of a truck into the hole for what usually ends up being a temporary fix. The goal is to make quick improvements until a longer lasting renovation can be funded.