Ditches in Mathews County aren’t doing their job. Water stands on some roads long after a rainstorm, spreading across people’s yards and creating a sodden mess, as residents, county officials, and the Virginia Department of Transportation wrangle over who has the responsibility for keeping the ditches clean and free running.

In a meeting at Mathews Memorial Library Monday night, members of the Mathews County Ditch Committee who have been working on solving the problem laid the responsibility for keeping the ditches clean squarely on VDOT shoulders.

“Why have we let VDOT continue to use the excuse that they can’t go on private property?” said committee member G.C. Morrow, who, along with cohort Carol Bova, has for several years been leading the charge to get Mathews ditches cleaned. “I don’t know how VDOT can say it’s private property. It’s their ditch. You’ve got to keep the water moving.”

While VDOT often offers lack...