Mathews residents, speaking out Tuesday during Virginia Department of Transportation’s public hearing on the county’s Secondary Six Year Plan, held during the Mathews County Board of Supervisors meeting, convinced the board and VDOT to prioritize drainage issues in the upcoming year.

VDOT’s schedule for secondary road improvements in each locality is reviewed and updated annually, then brought to a public hearing for comment from residents. And Mathews residents had a lot to say about it this year, beginning with county supervisor G.C. Morrow.

Morrow, speaking after VDOT’s Saluda Residency Administrator Joyce McGowan had told the board which roads were due for improvements during the next six years, asked if revenue-sharing funds allocated for improving Haven Beach Road could instead be used to solve drainage issues in the county. He pointed out that nearby Old House Woods Road, which was improved under VDOT’s Rural Rustic Road Program in late 2013, alre...