Road crew painted road lines over leaves, debris

Washington state residents said they were confused when they saw new street stripes painted in their neighborhood over leaves and road debris.

"I thought 'Were they drunk?'" said Martin Barrett. "Why would you paint over leaves?"

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KIRO-TV found paint on leaves and debris on at least five city roads.

"It's government work," Barrett said. "What else can you say -- it's the government at work --  so (it) usually means (it's) not well done and poorly motivated."

Pedestrians on Southwest 172nd Street said that the easily erasable lines are also hazardous to walkers and runners.

"I'm concerned for people that are older elderly people that are using the lines to guide them because maybe their vision is more impaired," Beth Barrett said. "If that line is gone what happens for them to be able for them to stay on the road."

Dan Trimble of the City of Burien said the city usually does not clear debris before painting the stripes.

"The paint trucks that stripe them produce the best results when they are operated at a constant speed," he said. "Stopping to remove debris in small areas often results in irregular or crooked striping, and increases the cost for our taxpayers."

He said the city is following up to fix any of the stripes that were not properly striped.

"In a few small areas, less than ideal results can happen from time to time, especially when wind and rain occur right before the work is scheduled," Trimble said. "In this case, staff has already arranged for the spot fixes as weather permits."

We asked how much the repainting will cost taxpayers.

Trimble could not provide an exact cost but said, "The road striping services are part of a larger maintenance contract that includes additional services other than just striping (such as signal maintenance). We pay for these services based on time and materials, not be the mile."