Causes Of Broken & Cracked Sidewalks

If you manage sidewalk maintenance you know that cracked sidewalks are common. Many times the cracks simply make the sidewalk look older, but under certain conditions they also become a safety risk and a liability to lawsuits.

Broken sidewalks are caused by a number of factors, some of which you can effect and other which you cannot. The most common cause of cracked sidewalks is movement under the ground. Tree root sidewalk damage is the most common. The slow growth of these roots lifts sections of concrete, causing them to be lifted and then crack. As trees are highly desirable, the best solutions are to plant trees farther away from sidewalks, or pick trees with deeper rather than shallow surface roots. Often this is not an option, so inexpensive repair methods such as horizontal concrete slicing can be employed and if needed be employed several times as needed for less than the cost of removing and replacing the broken sidewalk.

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Sidewalk Lifting & Other Problems

Tree roots are not the only cause of sidewalk lifting. Water can cause erosion under sidewalk panels, earthquakes, and impacts also cause sidewalk lifting, which typically leads to cracked sidewalks. Water and ice can crack and chip out chunks of concrete and even widen into holes. If these holes are softball size or larger they may pose a safety hazard and liability as well as looking bad. In this case concrete patching may be applied as a remedy.

Sometimes sidewalk lifting occurs on curbs and gutters ruining water drainage and causing water to puddle and sit. These puddles can be both a safety hazard as such puddles are more likely to cause a slip and fall, but also they permeate the concrete reducing it’s lifespan and making it more likely to crack and break. An inexpensive solution is to cut flowline channels through the lifted concrete to allow drainage to resume.

It is also common for the material filling expansion joints between concrete sidewalk panels to degrade leaving a horizontal gap that can catch high heels and canes as well as letting water get deep in between concrete panels damaging them and leading to more cracked sidewalk. Every three to ten years the expansion joint material may need to be replaced.

Fixes For Cracks In The Sidewalk

The first step to fixing cracked sidewalks is to do a thorough sidewalk inspection and identify all broken sidewalk sections, expansion joint gaps, large chips or holes, and drainage issues. Such an inspection will document the severity of each problem and the best solution so you can prioritize and create a plan of action.

Because tree roots grow, weather comes and goes, soil settles and earthquakes happen more than once you will need to regularly repeat your sidewalk inspections, at least yearly. There are two reasons for this: First cracked sidewalks that begin small within 3-6 months could become a hazard that now poses a safety risk and a lawsuit liability. If you plan for yearly inspections you will soon have a documented record of your sidewalk assets and repairs that will be a strong proof of your due diligence and efforts to regularly reduce risk.