Marshall County Highway Department crews are trying their best to make the roads as smooth as possible with the resources they have.
Supervisor of County Highways Jason Peters told the county commissioners this week they’re out now working on blemishes on the roadways.
“We’re just patching potholes,” said Peters. “A lot of the spots are blown up and we’re just trying to grind those back up and lay them down for a little bit. It depends on where our funds are, once we get rolling. Some of them, we will try to get addressed, but I don’t foresee us getting a bunch of them replaced.”
The roads where the department utilized the pug mill product last year will be covered with chip and seal material to reinforce that work. He added that the roads ground up this year will be addressed next year.
The department will have a training session this week on the recently purchased pug mill that is expected to save the county money when it comes to road surfacing.
“They’re supposed to be here Tuesday to give us a run-down on how it works. It’s a training class. On Wednesday, we will start making the product. We’re going to start making pug patch. Patch by far is the most expensive thing we buy. It’s at $85 a ton right now. We can make that for roughly $43 to $45 a ton.”
The county remains under an advisory level travel advisory due to the condition of the county roads. Peters asked that residents slow down to avoid damage to vehicles.
The commissioners have been receiving phone calls regarding the roads, but funds are limited to repave roads or complete extensive repair. Two severe winter seasons have created the road issues. Peters stressed that they are working to do what they can now to provide the best driving surface available with the funds they have within their budget.
