Resident urges York County to change grading practice after years of 'washboard' damage

A resident of Road J urged the York County Board of Commissioners on Sept. 20 to change how county crews grade gravel roads, saying repeated maintenance has left a persistent "washboard" surface that damages vehicles and threatens mail delivery.

"When they graded the road, they left the gravel at the edges and didn't touch the center," said resident Brandy Quaintance during the public forum. She presented photos of Recharge Road and a stretch of Road 11, and said that after recent grading crews had again left gravel piled at the sides, producing corrugations that appear within weeks.

Quaintance said she has driven the road for decades and described a mailbox hazard where repeated blade work created an abrupt drop in front of her mailbox that once forced the post office to stop delivery. "They came by with a maintainer and just kept cutting more and more," she said.

County officials told Quaintance they would forward the complaint to Highway Superintendent Harry and to liaisons Daniel and Bill for follow-up. The board did not take immediate action during the meeting but requested the highway department review the photos and the grading method described by the resident.

The highway superintendent had reported earlier in the meeting that crews have been patching and chip-sealing several county roads and hauling gravel from named suppliers; commissioners said they expect the superintendent and staff to address persistent local complaints about grading patterns.

Quaintance's materials and the board's referral to the highway superintendent will serve as the county's record of the complaint; the board indicated it expects the superintendent and the board's liaisons to work with the resident to find a corrective approach.