Street Department

A pothole is a disruption in the surface of a roadway where a portion of the road material has broken away. Most potholes result from the fatigue of the pavement surface, though heavy stress loads can also form potholes.

As fractures in the pavement develop, they typically interlock into "alligator crack" patterns. Chunks of pavement between fatigue cracks are then worked loose by vehicle tires, forming the pothole.

Pothole formation is exacerbated by low temperatures. Freezing causes water to expand, placing greater stress on already-cracked pavements. It is important to repair potholes as early as possible to prevent this.

Since asphalt is typically purchased by the ton, the department generally repairs a large series of potholes all at once, systematically throughout Hannibal, as opposed to repairing just a single pothole. It is not feasible to purchase material for a single pothole; however, if a singular pothole requires immediate repair due to safety or other factors, a material called “cold patch” can be used by the Street Department in the interim. Further, since asphalt plants are only open during the warm season, the cold patch is used to fill potholes in the winter months.

Please contact the Street Department at 573-221-0111 ext. 205 or email us using the form on this page to report any potholes for repair. It is important to us that these problems be identified and repaired as quickly as possible. If you have received damage from a street issue, please fill out a Claimant Statement and upload on the contact form on this page.

The city has two street-sweeping machines. During normal weather, at-least one street sweeping machine is always in operation - the whole workday, every workday.

Downtown commercial streets that carry high traffic volumes are generally swept on daily because they are dirty so frequently. Other streets are swept on a routine/rotation basis, as the street sweeper(s) cycle throughout the community.

Outside factors beyond the Street Department’s immediate knowledge may cause undue accumulation of street debris at any time. For instance, certain private construction projects, unanticipated truck traffic to-and-from certain businesses/industries, or heavy winds/rains can cause significant debris buildup on otherwise low-traveled and clean streets. Please contact the Street Department at 573-221-0111 ext. 205 or use the form on this page to email us if this occurs on your street; they can immediately schedule for your street to be swept. Otherwise, your street will be addressed through regular rotation.

Final Note:  Dust Control

Both city street sweepers are equipped with internal water sprayers to moderate dust during sweeping. However, during very cold weather, the use of water sprayers will damage the internal machinery (machine specifications discourage the use of water sprayers in freezing temperatures). Therefore, on very cold days, you may see clouds of dust around the street sweepers. Please bear with us; the only alternative is to avoid sweeping on very cold days; an alternative often used, though certain days during the winter absolutely require street sweeping - regardless of temperature - to remove all the salt, sand, and grime accumulated from snow plowing operations, which causes skidding and other vehicle hazards.

The Street Department divides Hannibal into fourteen (14) sectors for removing snow. Aside from plowing road miles, these areas include three (3) fire stations, the police station, three (3) public parking lots, the airport, and city hall.

During typical snows, the Street Department begins by opening access to emergency buildings (police, fire, etc.). Each truck then begins plowing its sector. Trucks begin each street by opening a lane, then turning around and opening the other lane. Many streets allow a truck to plow its way into a maze of neighborhood streets – single lane only – and then plow the other lane as it retraces its way back out of the neighborhood. Each neighborhood (and road network) is unique. Using their experience, drivers assigned to each sector have adapted their routes to optimize lane miles while minimizing time.

It takes several hours to plow all fourteen (14) sectors of the community. If snowfall continues during snow plow operations, as is often the case, each route must be repeated - perhaps several times. Plowing is a systematic operation, which simply takes time. The city asks that residents be patient.  All the streets are eventually plowed.

Most snow plow widths measure less than the width of a street lane. Therefore, the Street Department must return to each area for additional passes, widening a number of narrowly-plowed streets into broader lanes. This goes for intersections as well, which must be cleaned up for safe turning movements, and the removal of sight obstructions (ie. snow drifts).

Priority #1 is to open streets for traffic. Priority #2 is to clear debris from intersections (debris often created by the plows themselves). Priority #3 is to widen streets to the curb. During large snows, the clearing of safe driving lanes often produces unsafe snow drifts at the roads’ edge. The Department must return and address these areas while widening streets.

Alleys are prioritized last, though alleys that constitute sole vehicular access to people’s homes must be treated as streets – opened during initial street passes. Note, certain alleys are difficult to plow in icy weather; particularly those on steep slopes. Alleys are rarely, if ever, plowed at night; narrow lanes, poor visibility, and no street lighting make this a very dangerous operation.

Salt spreaders distribute a mixture of salt, sand, and rock – used for both traction and ice melting. The Street Department generally spreads this mixture after snow plowing operations are nearly complete. Spreading this mixture any earlier can be wasteful – it would simply be scraped from the streets by the snow plow on its next pass.

The salt mixture is spread to complete the clearing process. Note, salt is not effective in temperatures below 25+/- degrees Fahrenheit, though it is spread to anticipate warming temperatures. Snow plowing efforts alone may not entirely clear all streets - the help of Mother Nature is sometimes required to return the streets to a fully safe condition.

Please contact the Street Department at 573-221-0111 ext. 205 or use the contact form on this page to report any issues.

By city ordinance, sidewalk maintenance is the responsibility of the property owner having frontage. In some communities, sidewalks are the responsibility of the city; in others, sidewalks are the responsibility of the adjacent property owner. Hannibal falls into this latter category.

Despite the responsibility for sidewalks lying with the property owner, Hannibal does operate a sidewalk program, whereby the city will remove the existing sidewalk at the owner’s request, allowing the property owner to then construct the new replacement sidewalk. The program is designed to make repairs more convenient and less expensive for the property owner.

Residents wishing to pursue this course should contact the street department at 573-221-0111 ext. 205 or use the contact form on this page to schedule this service. Beyond simply scheduling a date for service, the street department can also provide property owners with the appropriate sidewalk specifications (width, depth, type of material, etc.) for the new sidewalk.

Many citizens with disabilities have difficulty parking on their streets at locations convenient to their homes. This is particularly true in neighborhoods with many cars parked along the street.

The city allows people with disabilities to make a special request for a disabled parking spot on their street.  Obviously, if every citizen made this request, there would be no room for anyone to park on the street.  Thus, there are certain guidelines for approving these requests, and each is considered case-by-case.

The requirements are:

1. The applicant must own a vehicle that is properly licensed and tagged, or be a legitimate dependent of a person owning a vehicle that is properly licensed and tagged.
2. Applicant must have no other vehicular access available to the home (ie. driveway, rear alley, etc.).
3. Applicant must be willing to make a curb cut and install a ramp at their own expense.
   • The ramp must extend from the street to the sidewalk or entryway of the home.
   • A permit would be required for this work.
   • There is no need to install the ramp before making your disabled parking request; however, if the request is approved, the ramp must be installed before the city will erect a disabled parking sign.
4. The vehicle cannot remain in the proposed parking space more than 48 hours without being moved (this mirrors regular on-street parking requirements).
5. On-street disabled parking spaces are limited to two (2) per block; no more than one (1) on each side of the street within that block.
6. Requests are granted for a two-year period. If your need continues beyond two (2) years, the city is happy to renew it. We simply wish to avoid situations where the applicant later moves from the neighborhood, but the disabled parking signs remain forever, though no longer needed.
7. The city may require medical documentation for the disability.
8. On-street disabled parking, even in front of your own home, may be used by any other disabled person at any time. We hope others would recognize and respect the intent of a disabled parking space right in front of someone's home, but it may legally be used by other disabled persons, as needed.
9. The Traffic Committee can make exceptions to the limitation on the number of disabled parking signs per block. The limitation exists to prevent excessive consumption of street parking spaces for individual people. However, the city does recognize the importance, convenience, and safety necessary to accommodate disabled persons, and will make exceptions for legitimate causes.

Please contact the Street Department at 573-221-0111 ext. 205 or the email form on this page if you wish to make such a request.