Council seeks answers on delayed stripe-and-marking work after street resurfacing

Council members on Feb. 11 pressed the administration about streets that have been resurfaced but remain without center lines, stop bars and other markings for months, raising safety concerns.

Councilor Abbott asked the mayor for an update on when newly paved streets will receive final striping and pavement markings, saying missing markings were creating dangerous driving behavior. Several councilors described frustrated residents in neighborhoods such as Eastlake and Rugby who reported pavement striping left half-done or delayed for weeks.

Mayor Randall L. Woodfin told the council that the Birmingham Department of Transportation (BDOT) is aware of a citywide backlog on striping and has increased engagement with the contractor to hold it accountable. He said BDOT is pushing contractors to catch up on striping and that the administration will ask department staff to brief council, and to provide updates via email.

Woodfin said the matter extends beyond a single neighborhood and that the administration is willing to have PDOT or BDOT staff attend a council meeting to explain the full process for paving, striping and post-paving work, including challenges and timelines.

Council members also asked whether the city recoups costs when striping work is re-done after contractors re-mark recently paved streets; the mayor said he would have PDOT provide a detailed response and invited the transportation committee to include the issue on its agenda.

What happens next: Administration said it will provide council with an update from BDOT and the contractor and offered to bring department staff before the transportation committee for a fuller briefing.