St. Stephen is facing a nearly $17-million backlog of road reconstruction projects, according to a new report.

Dillon Consulting was tasked with creating a road condition assessment and needs analysis for the town.

Taylor McNeill, a project manager at the firm, presented the high-level findings at a recent committee of the whole meeting.

A rating scale known as the Pavement Condition Index, or PCI, is used to measure the condition of paved roads on a scale of zero to 100.

McNeill said the average condition of the town’s paved roads is 51, which is considered to be poor.

“About 40 per cent of your collector roads are in very poor or poor condition, whereas your local roads, it’s closer to 65 per cent,” said McNeill.

Collector roads are designated highways and tend to be in better condition because the municipality gets external funding, she noted.

The municipality currently owns and maintains more than 47 kilometres of road which has a replacement value of $33 million.

McNeill is proposing that the town spend about $16.5 million over the next 10 years to increase the average Pavement Condition Index to 70.

She included a detailed five-year capital plan, which lists just over $9 million worth of spending for 14.5 kilometres of roadway.

“We’re trying to be a little bit more proactive versus reactive,” said McNeill. “I would say it’s a little bit of a hole that we need to get out of first before we can be more proactive.”

Recommended next steps for the town include developing a comprehensive infrastructure plan and refining the prioritization process.