By Joe Jarosz
Northeast News
December 30, 2015

KANSAS CITY, Missouri — The Kansas City Auditor’s Office released an audit on compliance with street plate installation requirements.

Street plates are used to cover excavations in paved driving surfaces. When not properly installed, street plates can be hazardous to motorists, pedestrians, and cyclists and can cause noise and negative effects on traffic.

According to a press release, 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 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 with street plate installation requirements.

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.

To view the complete report online, visit http://kcmo.gov/cityauditor/.