By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
The 389 miles of paved county roads in Barton County are among the most numerous across all Kansas counties. Someone has to take care of those roads. Barton County Works Director Chris Schartz spoke with Eagle Media General Manager Dakota Tucker on Thursday's "County Edition" program on 1590 KVGB/95.5 FM, to explain how Barton County crews accomplish the giant feat.
"The way our program works, we do the four quadrants, and we do one quadrant every year, which is about 100 miles of sand seal," Schartz said. "This year, we are in the southwest quadrant, which goes to about Dartmouth blacktop. Next year, we'll be in the southeast, which goes from the Dartmouth blacktop to the east county line, then north probably to Claflin. So we'll be in the Ellinwood area."
Naturally, the work costs money, but Schartz said the maintenance work is valuable not only to provide a better driving surface, but also to seal cracks. The coat of oil, topped with sand and rocks, prevents the cracks from getting bigger, and also keeps out moisture that can cause additional damage when it freezes. In the end, it is cheaper to maintain the roads than to completely overhaul them. Traffic delays during the work are inconvenient for motorists but serve a dual purpose, including keeping workers safe.
"That fresh oil we're putting down on the ground, you do not want that on your vehicle," said Schartz. "It's a pain to get off. It's so sticky. We're spraying it on the roads at 170 degrees because it has to be hot."
Barton County Road and Bridge does not have an individual Facebook page but updates can often be found on the Barton County KS Facebook page. Additional road closure information can be found by visiting Bartoncounty.org and visiting the Road and Bridge Road Closure updates.