Waterford — Town roads are in bad shape, according to a recent study by consulting firm VHB. The firm told members of the Board of Finance and Representative Town Meeting last week that the town would need to make greater investments in road maintenance if quality is to be maintained or improved.

The firm recommended roughly $13.8 million in roadwork to get the town’s transportation system up to snuff. The town also will need to increase investment in road maintenance from what it has been — about $500,000 a year — to $1.16 million a year through 2025 to maintain road quality, according to a VHB presentation.

An annual investment of about $2 million a year would be needed to improve road quality, according to the presentation.

First Selectman Daniel Steward said that with the recent completion of a decade of school construction, the town can now direct resources toward needs such as road improvement.

He said the town soon will go to bid for work expected to begin this summer on Dayton Road, Lamphere Road and Douglas Lane. He said the total cost for the planned work, which is slated to include a complete rebuilding of Douglas Lane, will be roughly $1.6 million.

“You have to take and spread this out,” he said, later continuing, “We will be moving up the levels that they’re recommending over the next few years going forward.”

VHB recommends repairs to all but 22 of the town’s roughly 120 miles of road.

Road issues requiring repairs include cracks, potholes and drainage issues. The problems can result in wear and tear on cars, which Board of Finance member John “Bill” Sheehan said can result in higher insurance costs for drivers.

Steward said the work on Douglas Lane would constitute the completion of work begun a few years ago — he said one half of the road awaited repairs. Depending on available funding, the first selectman said Bloomingdale Road could also see repairs in the 2015-16 fiscal year.

Fog Plain Road and Fargo Road are slated for work in 2016-17, according to Steward.

Sheehan said he was not surprised by the presentation’s pessimistic outlook and that he felt the town would need to step up the pace if it were to complete needed work. The issue is money, he said. Planned repairs to town infrastructure, such as to the municipal complex on Hartford Road, which houses the Utility Commission, are already slated to eat up dollars from the budget.

“Nothing hard is ever easy,” Sheehan said.

He and Steward said the town may look into grants to cover some road work. Sheehan also suggested bonding, and said town officials may need to consider raising taxes in the future.

Road condition is not a new topic for Waterford town officials. Representative Town Meeting member Theodore Olynciw has vented about road condition at past public meetings, saying his constituents are particularly concerned.

“Our roads are worse than any other surrounding towns, even New London. They used to have the worst roads, and they’re better than ours,” he said at an RTM meeting in April.

During the Board of Finance meeting last week, board member Cheryl Larder asked VHB Managing Director Gordon Daring whether he felt town officials had listened to VHB recommendations five years ago, when the firm last presented to the board.

Daring’s answer, in short, was no.

“I don’t believe that the town has quite been investing the amount that we kind of suggested would be needed,” he said.

t.townsend@theday.com

Twitter: @ConnecticuTess