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Audit released on street plate installation

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The City Auditor’s Office released an audit on compliance with street plate installation requirements on Thursday.

Street plates are used to cover excavations in paved driving surfaces. When not properly installed, they can be hazardous to motorists, pedestrians and cyclists.

The plates can cause noise and negative effects on traffic, according to a news release from City Hall of Kansas City.

The audit concluded that ride quality and the safety of city streets have been diminished due to contractors and utilities not installing and maintaining street plates according to city requirements.

During inspections of a sample of street plate locations and ride-a-longs with Public Works Department inspectors, auditors said they found street plates that were not properly pinned down, not embedded on non-concrete roadway surfaces and not ramped.

The audit also concluded that there was not a single source for all city street plate installation requirements, which could have contributed to noncompliance.

The audit includes recommendations to improve contractor knowledge of street plate requirements and to offer Public Works a broader range of enforcement measures when street plates are not installed properly.

Management agreed with the recommendations according to the news release.

View the complete report online at http://kcmo.gov/cityauditor/.

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