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What causes washboarding on roads?
Washboards or couragation on a roadway are a combination of factors working together, and are difficult to control. Poor quality material is part of the reason, loose dead gravel combined with heavy acceleration by traffic is usually to root cause. Wheel slippage under power causes the material to wave up in ripples, and the ripples quickly grow in depth and intensity if left unchecked. Excessive braking is also a contributing factor. Occuring primarily at locations where hard acceleration by traffic is common, such as going up a hill or near an intersection, the menace of washboards is slowly being eliminated with proper techniques when blading and improvement to existing material to resist loose material in these areas is the part we can address. The driving habits of the public are beyond our control and can still create this undesireable condition in spite of our best efforts.
Why does the retrieved gravel get so greasy after a rain?
In order to rehabilitate bad gravel to good, it needs the enhancement of specific materials, mainly clays and fines. For this to be effective, the material is graded onto the surface prior to a likely rain event in the near future. This will create a temporary greasy condition, and will only do so the FIRST time it gets wet. Soon the material becomes densely packed and a similar rain event afterwards will be a total different situation, with the roadway being far tighter when wet and safer to drive even during a rainstorm. Also the roadway will return to its pre-rain condition in a matter of hours under normal traffic.
Why does there have to be a windrow of material on the road all from Spring until Summer?
The purpose of the windrow is to be a reserve for future blading and building, a storage area for unset gravel, and a traffic control tool to offset wheel traffic in a desireable means. Windrows are rarely more than 6 inches high and are placed out of the driving area so as to not create a safety issue. Occaisionally a large windrow may exist on a road for a brief period while a major task is being done there, but it is a temporary condition that must be done when doing any heavy repair or correction to a surface.
Why do I see the road graders one behind the other?
This is often done to eliminate deadheading, and to eliminate leaving a windrow for long periods of time. The material is worked in one direction and from the other the next time, offsetting the chances of blade hop from repeatedly blading in the same direction every time. It is policy for us to not lay out more than 10 miles of road before back passing, so in case of a breakdown it is possible to still get the other grader in area to finish up before days end. A windrow is never left in the roadway overnight for any reason.
How much does the County budget for annual road maintenance?
Currently our annual budget is around 190,000, which includes road grading, weed control, mowing, gravel and hauling, labor, equipment purchase, upkeep and service to our premises, grounds, roads and bridges. This also includes snow management and annual supplies needed to sign and post our roads, and culvert placement and management.
What makes good gravel?
The actual content of the various materials that make good gravel cannot be detected simply by looking. Gradation of material and proper proportions of each are critical to good gravel. The spec used by the State D.O.T. is a good place to start. They require that the mixture contain 4-12% plasticity fines and clays that are the binder of the blend. Also essential are the amounts of course sand, and the topsize of the stone. The state spec of 100% of material passing through a 3/4 inch screen keeps damaging large stone out. Crushed stone is superior to screened stone. The irregular shape of the broken stone sets better and stays set longer than round stones screened do. The screened round stone is very difficult to set and tends to break free quicker than crushed stone of the same gradation. Gravel lacking the fines and clays will not set no matter how much water or packing you do to it. Only if clay migrates up from the roadbed itself will binderless gravel set up. Gravel lacking binder is useful in drying up mud slicked roads, countering excessive fines retrieved or as basecourse on a new dirt grade. We also have some gravel with excessive clays and binders to counter dead gravel where soil conditions are not clay based, such as silt and sand regions.
What is the greatest damaging factor to gravel roads?
Excessive loads create more damage to roads than every weather event combined. The damage done from one overloaded vehicle can take a year or more to completely correct. There is just no legitamate reason to haul excessive loads. There is no load worth the damage created. Period. Overloaded hauling may result in a few less trips, but the damage done can destroy an otherwise good road. Overloaded hauling is 100% preventable. Haul legal, the road you save will most likely be your own.
How does Buffalo County manage to operate with so little funding?
Planning and very hard work, techniques that get results and as little wasted effort as possible. With no industry other than agriculture, we are limited to rediculous status compared to peer counties, yet deliver outstanding results in spite of lacking funds.
How much do they pay the workers at Buffalo County?
My highest paid operator earns 10.25 per hour, with no overtime other than emergency. My annual salary as Hwy. Supt is 22,800. We generally work 4 days per week, 10 hours per day, allowing us to have three days off to earn the rest of our living. Wages are unusually low in this field of work, and it is extremely difficult to find personnel willing to work for the wage paid and personal health insurance as the only side benefit other than wages paid. We have no retirement and will give 100% dedication to the County and recieve no long term benefit in return, other than the satisfaction of a job done exceptionally well. Sadly, there is definately room for improvement.
Shown below is a typical Buffalo County road in late May. A slight windrow of good gravel is ready to lay on the driving surface in anticipation of rainfall.
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