Barton County will buy 20,000 tons of asphalt at it still won’t be enough.
That will just be the start of what the Road and Bridge Department will use up as it works to renew the hundreds of miles of county roads this construction season.
The Barton County Commission approved the purchase of 20,000 tons of cold mix asphalt from Venture Corp. at $7,23 per ton for a total of $144,600.
Road and Bridge Director Dale Phillips told the commissioners that it won’t cover all of the paving work his department will do for the construction season, either.
Phillips anticipates that his department will mix another 10,000 to 12,000 tons of asphalt to conclude the construction season.
At this point, that asphalt will not be used on Kiowa Road, but the commissioners were asked to coordinate with city officials to make improvements to the heavily driven township road on the east edge of Great Bend.
The dirt road leads to the city sewer plant and a number of residences and carries a great deal of traffic. In dry periods it also create a lot of dust for those who live along it and residents are seeking county involvement in making improvements.
The speed limit on that road is 35 mph, but there is only one speed sign and the county is arranging to put up more and to enforce the speed limit.
There are also discussions between the county and city to determine if there could be a cooperative program to share costs of paving the road.
County Administrator Richard Boeckman said he is communicating with the city on the issue.
Meanwhile, there are plans for a speed study on the road to see if it should be slower than 35 mph and additional signs can be established to try to control the speed, it was noted.
Phillips noted it is a high traffic road and that the drought conditions have added to the dust problem. “It’s a maintenance issue,” he commented.
Great Bend Township Trustee Joe Felke said there has been an effort to address the rock mixture, but it’s difficult to keep enough on the road to keep down the dust, when there is so much truck traffic.