Progress slow, steady on dirt road repair in EPC
An El Paso County road supervisor said crews remain several months behind in smoothing out unpaved roads made rough by spring and summer rain.
However, Troy Wiitala, county highway manager, said drier weather has allowed crews to make some progress.
On Thursday, crews worked on a bumpy stretch of Log Road. A water truck sprayed the road to soften and moisten it for a grader to smooth it out and fill potholes and ruts which produce what’s called a “washboard” effect.
Wiitala said the county has as many as 20 crews responsible for 1,000 miles of dirt or gravel roads.
“And we have to use the same equipment for other jobs,” he said. “But we’re trying to do our best to catch up.”
Local resident Ken Hayward tested the repaired road on his motorcycle.
“Well, there’s still a lot of loose sand that they probably need to get packed into the roads — or remove it, because it is kind of tough on a motorcycle for sure,” Hayward said.
In a related matter, repairs continue on a section of Jones Road just east of the Log Road intersection. Flash flooding from a drainage channel washed out the section in May.
Wiitala said workers will install metal pilings to stabilize the road and replace two damaged culverts with three new culverts.
He said the road should reopen by the first week of October.
“We’re hoping,” he said. “There’s no guarantees. It seems like the storms continue to get bigger, or there’s more rainfall. But we’re going to try to prevent the next one from happening.”
