You have to wonder about the road improvement priorities of Governor Rod Blagojevich.

I don’t often take Route 31 between Crystal Lake and McHenry.

To put it bluntly, its surface is abysmal.

Near Terra Cotta, the big valley, I’ve labeled the Valley of the Potholes.

It’s not that one cannot find beauty in potholes, but hitting them can cause expensive damage to one’s car. One at the edge of the McHenry Blacktop even cost me a new tire.

You will notice from the tire track in the hot patch that temporarily fills a large pothole in Route 31, that the repair is recent.

And temporary.

Permanent repairs are being constructed by Alliance Construction on the four-lane portion of Route 31 south of East Crystal Lake Avenue.

And someone in the Illinois Department of Transportation tell me the logic of fixing a median strip when the road down the hill is in shambles?