Edgecomb voters could have some big decisions to make five months from now, on a subject selectmen hear a lot about from residents: the condition of the town's roads.

A committee the selectmen appointed is honing in on potential road projects throughout town. There are no cost estimates yet, but based on some of the committee's initial findings, the need for roadwork appears substantial.

The Capital Improvements Committee will likely have a proposal ready in time for selectmen to take to the May 2013 annual town meeting, panel member and Selectmen's Chairman Jessica Chubbuck said.

Chubbuck said she wants to have a public hearing prior to town meeting for whatever projects end up being proposed.

The committee will probably chunk out proposed projects on a timeline, some to be completed in the next one to two years, others in three to five years, and the rest in five to ten years, Chubbuck said. “And there would be an alternate plan, which would be what (work) we have to do to get by.”

“It's a matter of, do we want well-maintained roads, do we want mediocre roads, or do we want passable roads,” Chubbuck said. Roads are one of the most common issues residents bring up to her, she said. “They want safe roads.”

Committee members have visited the roads the town maintains, and have talked with Edgecomb Road Commissioner Scott Griffin. Now they're getting down to specifics on which roads do and do not need work, which ones need it the most, and what the projects might involve.

So far, the committee is eying Merry Island, Atlantic Highway, Cochran, and Old Fort roads as some of the ones in the worst shape, with Mill, Mount Hunger Road East, Old County, and Spring Hill Farm roads close behind.

Old Fort Road is crumbling; and Old County Road and Atlantic Highway have sinking shoulders, according to the committee's notes from a recent meeting.

Old Fort Road resident Gretchen Burleigh-Johnson can attest to that road's issues. She walks the road every day, with care. “You have to be careful, or you'll end up end over teakettle,” Burleigh-Johnson said.

The patches the road receives don't help for very long, she said. “It needs more than coal-patching, for sure.”

The committee's notes, provided by Chubbuck, discuss possibly lowering Merry Island Road's 11-foot-tall hill by three or four feet and adding shoulders. Also, the road's surface could be raised to create ditches. However, parts of the project would depend on Central Maine Power moving some poles, and possibly also depend on property owners granting permission for work on their land.

Cross Point Road, the site of the town's last major roadwork project, garnered a preliminary top ranking of a 10 for its good condition.

The committee would like to hear from residents as it continues its work, Chubbuck said.

The committee's next meeting is set for 5 p.m. January 7 at town hall.