Don McGowan is the first to admit that the new grey granite pavers and matching curbs that line Lakeshore Road between Navy and Allan Streets are attractive.
But he thinks drivers need a warning about the expensive danger they pose to tire sidewalls and rims.
“They’re beautiful, but beware,” he says. “These beautiful curbs can do real damage.”
Unlike conventional curbs that are slightly angled toward the roadway, the granite curb has a straight vertical edge.
McGowan was parking downtown last December when he accidentally mounted one of his front tires onto the flat-faced granite curb and then steered off it.
“The tire climbed the curb as opposed to being deflected off the curb,” he said. “With the vertical face, you drop off, and it creates a shearing force.”
When he checked his tire, the sharp edges of two abutting pieces of granite had cut through the sidewall and damaged the rim.
Replacing the tire for his 2019 Ford Expedition cost nearly $500, with an estimate of more than $1,500 to replace the rim.
He contacted the town about covering the damage to his vehicle, arguing that provincial design standards require curbs to be angled, not vertical, but the town refused to reimburse him.
It claims the curbs don’t need to be angled because they are made of granite, not concrete or asphalt.
“After thorough review with our departments and revisiting the downtown renovation project including the curbs, we have determined that the granite curbs have met required road standards,” said an email McGowan received from the town’s risk management claims analyst.
“The primary cause of this incident remains driver error, and it is difficult for us to consider compensation knowing that the curb was struck, which was the proximate cause of all damages,” it continued. “It is not possible to determine how much damage your vehicle would have sustained if the curbs were concrete.”
Design flaw, says resident
McGowan says he is still considering pursuing the issue through small claims court.
While walking through downtown, he says he witnessed a smaller car experience the same problem and resulting damage.
He adds that the dealership where he had his vehicle repaired told him they had seen others needing repairs because of the granite curbs.
In an email, a spokesperson for the Ontario Ministry of Transportation said that there are no provincial specifications for granite curbs and that Ontario municipalities have jurisdiction over their own roads.
“Some municipalities do use the municipal version of the Ontario provincial standards, others set their own standards or project-specific construction specifications and standards,” it stated.
The town’s Transportation and Engineering department confirmed to Oakville News that there is no provincial standard for granite curbs.
“The town has followed good engineering practices which does not require an angle cut into the curbs,” said an email from the town. “The curbs in downtown Oakville are consistent with what other municipalities that have chosen to use granite curbs have employed.”
McGowan remains unconvinced that the material should impact the curb’s design.
He sees the flat edge on the granite curbs as a design flaw that should be corrected by hiring a concrete cutting company to create an angled edge.
“There’s a cost, but when they chose those beautiful curbs and chose to disregard the provincial standards, they took on liability,” he says.
“This has been a really not great experience. I think the town needs to say, ‘hey, we screwed up’.”