In a revealing testament to Hamilton’s persistent infrastructure challenges, Aberdeen Avenue has claimed the dubious honor of being named Ontario’s worst road for the second consecutive year. The annual CAA Worst Roads campaign, which collected over 20,000 votes from concerned citizens across the province, has once again highlighted the deteriorating state of critical transportation arteries that thousands of Ontarians rely on daily.
“Aberdeen Avenue has become a symbol of infrastructure neglect,” notes Teresa Di Felice, CAA South Central Ontario’s assistant vice president of government relations. “When a road appears on this list multiple years running, it signals a fundamental breakdown in maintenance priorities that affects everyone from daily commuters to emergency responders.”
The 2024 rankings reveal a troubling consistency in infrastructure challenges. Toronto’s Eglinton Avenue East maintained its second-place position for another year, while Barton Street East in Hamilton climbed to third place from its previous fifth-place ranking. These persistent appearances suggest systematic issues rather than temporary concerns.
According to CAA’s detailed analysis, the primary issues driving public dissatisfaction include pothole-riddled surfaces (87%), crumbling pavement edges (57%), and inadequate traffic flow management (31%). These problems extend beyond mere inconvenience—they present genuine safety hazards and cause measurable economic damage through vehicle repairs and traffic delays.
Hamilton’s pronounced presence on the list—claiming three of the top ten spots—speaks to a localized crisis that municipal authorities are struggling to address effectively. In addition to Aberdeen and Barton, Burlington Street East secured the ninth position, creating a concerning cluster of deteriorating infrastructure within a single municipality.
For Toronto residents, the news offers little comfort. Five major Toronto thoroughfares feature prominently in the top ten: Eglinton Avenue East (2nd), Finch Avenue East (4th), Dufferin Street (6th), Eglinton Avenue West (7th), and Steeles Avenue East (8th). This geographic concentration suggests the province’s largest city faces unique challenges in maintaining its extensive road network.
The annual CAA campaign serves a vital democratic function beyond simply identifying problem areas. It amplifies citizens’ voices and transforms individual frustrations into actionable data that municipal and provincial authorities can use for infrastructure planning. Last year, six roads from the 2023 list saw significant rehabilitation projects initiated—evidence that public pressure through this campaign can catalyze meaningful action.
“We’ve observed a direct correlation between roads appearing on our list and subsequent repair priorities,” explains Di Felice. “The campaign creates accountability and helps municipalities justify allocation of limited infrastructure budgets toward the most critical needs.”
The economic implications extend beyond government budgets. A recent CAA study revealed that Ontarians spend approximately $3 billion annually on vehicle repairs directly attributable to poor road conditions—costs that disproportionately affect working families and small businesses operating delivery fleets.
As provincial and municipal governments face mounting pressure to address these infrastructure deficiencies, the CAA’s campaign has emerged as a powerful tool for democratic participation in urban planning priorities. Transportation experts note that early intervention on deteriorating roads typically costs significantly less than major reconstruction projects necessitated by prolonged neglect.
For residents of the affected areas, particularly in Hamilton and Toronto, the question remains whether this year’s rankings will translate into tangible improvements or whether these same streets will continue their annual appearance on a list no community wants to top. As climate change brings increasingly severe weather patterns to Ontario, can our infrastructure planning evolve quickly enough to prevent further deterioration of these essential public assets?
