TxDOT Project Updates

UNDATED — Here’s a quick look at work planned in the Tyler District of the Texas Department of Transportation.

ANDERSON COUNTY — The Texas Department of Transportation’s annual preventative maintenance program known as “District-Wide Seal Coat” is scheduled to kick off Monday, May 2 in Cherokee County, followed by the same work in Anderson County. Crews are scheduled to apply a seal coat to State Highway 110 in Cherokee County between U.S. Highway 79 in New Summerfield and U.S. Highway 84 in Rusk on May 2, then move to U.S. Highway 84 in Palestine between U.S. Highway 287 and Farm Road 3266 east of town.

Staying in Anderson County, the work is scheduled to move to Farm Road 645 between Farm Road 320 and U.S. 79, Spur 324 between U.S. 287 and Farm Road 321, and US 287 between the Freestone County Line and FM 321.

Daytime lane closures will be in effect in each location while the work is in
progress and flaggers will control traffic in two lane areas. Loose gravel may be
present for several days following a seal coat application.
Motorists are encouraged to seek alternate routes if possible to avoid delays.

The District-Wide Seal Coat program, which will seal approximately 300 miles of roads as it passes through all eight counties in the Tyler District before the end of August, uses a two-step process of spraying down hot asphalt and covering it with rock to add years of life to existing pavement. “Just because a highway has a smooth ride now doesn’t mean it will for long,” said TxDOT public information officer Larry Krantz. “Once a hot mix surface gets to be 2-to-3 years old, it’s time to start thinking about seal coating. Once cracks start appearing in the surface, it’s only a matter of time before you start seeing bigger problems like base failures. Base failures mean lane closures, and lane closures
mean inconvenience.”

The hot asphalt oil penetrates any cracks or imperfections in the roadway surface to seal water out. Just that little bit of preventative maintenance can sometimes add up to seven years of nearly maintenance-free life to a roadway. In a district that has nearly 3,600 centerline miles of highways throughout eight counties, any road that doesn’t need constant attention saves taxpayers money. Resurfacing a mile of a two-lane Farm-To-Market road with the standard two inches of hot mix costs around $131,000 in material alone. Seal-coating that same roadway, which will likely help the roadway last longer than the more expensive overlay, costs roughly $21,000.

“Highway maintenance is all about getting the biggest return for the tax dollar,” Krantz said. “As with many things, prevention is much cheaper than the cure in the long run. Seal coat is our best and most cost-effective method of prevention.” The sprayed asphaltic oil also provides an adhesive layer for the rock spread on top to stick, providing a new driving surface. “We can’t just spray down that much asphaltic oil and drive off. It would be too slippery,” Krantz said. “By adding that rock on top, we’re giving motorists a roadway that gives their tires something to bite into in wet weather and in case of an emergency braking maneuver.”

Maintenance sections plan years in advance to determine which roads will get a seal coat and when. “The idea is to get roads in a given section into a seven-year rotation for seal coat,” Krantz said. “Our maintenance sections work hard to get their ‘seal coat roads’ ready each year. Most of them began preparing their roads for seal coat last summer, and they’re all planning their 2012 and 2013 seal coat roads now. In fact, a majority of work performed by maintenance sections is in preparation for District-Wide Seal Coat, from repairing potholes to repairing edge damage to drainage work. Crews work to get as many imperfections taken care of and get the roadway as smooth as possible so the seal coat can cover it all and help those repairs last. “It’s all part of a bigger picture,” Krantz said. “It’s all part of getting ready for seal coat.”

CHEROKEE COUNTY — Beginning Monday, Texas Department of Transportation maintenance crews this week are scheduled to make pavement repairs on U.S. Highway 79 at its intersection with U.S. Highway 69 (Rusk Street and South Jackson Street), and then move east on US 79 making the same repairs in various locations. This work is scheduled to last throughout the week. US 69 and US 79, working in and around the intersection; and US 79 east of US 69. Daytime lane closures will be in effect while the work is in progress, and motorists are encouraged to seek alternate routes if possible to avoid delays.

RUSK COUNTY — Texas Department of Transportation maintenance crews this week are scheduled to perform base repairs in various locations on U.S. Highway 259 north of Henderson between Farm Road 2276 and Farm Road 850. Daytime lane closures will be in effect in each location while the work is in progress, and flaggers will control traffic.

WOOD COUNTY — Texas Department of Transportation maintenance crews this week are scheduled to perform pavement repair operations in various locations on State Highway 37 in Winnsboro between State Highway 11 and Farm Road 515, and south of Winnsboro near Farm Road 1647. Daytime lane closures will be in effect in each location while the work is in progress, and flaggers will control traffic in two-lane areas.

VAN ZANDT COUNTY — Texas Department of Transportation maintenance crews this week are scheduled to perform fog seal operations on Farm Road 751 north of Wills Point while a second crew resurfaces Farm Road 47 between State Highway 243 and State Highway 198. Daytime lane closures will be in effect in each location while the work is in progress, and flaggers will control traffic in two-lane areas.

HENDERSON COUNTY — Texas Department of Transportation maintenance crews this week are scheduled to continue resurfacing operations on Farm Road 85 between the Navarro County Line and State Highway 274 in Seven Points. Daytime lane closures will be in effect while the work is in progress, and flaggers will control traffic.