From potholes to plowing, P.E.I. now accepting road trouble reports by text

People driving on P.E.I. can now report road issues, as well as problems with the Confederation Trail, to the government with a text message.

Islanders are being encouraged to send photos, videos and information on broken traffic lights, poor pavement, plowing or sanding issues or other problems toone of three numbers.

• Kings County:902-200-2122.
• Queens County:902-200-6649.
• Prince County:902-200-1014.

The province will then use that information to investigate concerns and dispatch crews asneeded. It might be more convenient for Islanders to report issues viatext, said Transportation MinisterSteven Myersin a news release.

"We also want to know about road issues right away so we can fix small problems before they become big problems," Myers said.

He said he hopes the new system will help government provide better service to Islanders.

"If you're not happy with the way your road is plowed, or if your road hasn't been plowed, or if there's roadkill on the road, or a pothole that you want dealt with, you'll be able to text it and it'll go right into our queue to be dealt with right away," said Myers.

The system will be monitored by a staff member, who will look into the problem and dispatch someone to fix it.

The government will also track the information to get a clearer picture of the state of roads on P.E.I.

"The technology allows us to make sure a response on our end is happening in a timely manner," Myers said.

"And it lets us track trends over time so we have good data on what's happening on our Island roads."

Communicating in a 'much simpler fashion'

Myers said he's had more Islanders reaching out to him online to address problems with Island roads.

"One of the things that kind of started this conversation was the snow removal situationwhere people will start messaging their MLAs saying 'hey the plowhasn't come down the road yet,'" he said.

Myers said people have been reaching out to him on social media too. And he hopes this new system will cater to those people who are more comfortable sending a quick message.

"Younger people especially are looking to communicate in a much simpler fashion and this is going to give them that avenue," he said.

Myers said Islanders should pull over,or wait until they're not behind the wheel before texting about road issues and be sure that when taking photos or videos,they do so safely.

Road conditions and issues can still be reported over the phone or via email.Islanders can get reports on road conditions bycalling 511 or online at the511 web site.

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