County Roads Department amends snow removal ordinance

The Henry County Secondary Roads Department is already preparing for winter.

Amendments to the ordinance on snow and ice removal on secondary roads were approved during a Board of Supervisors meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 18.

Snow plows will continue to operate during work hours of 5 a.m. to 6 p.m. After roads are plowed, intersections, hills and curves may have additional salt and sand placed on them, but more salt and sand might not be placed on them during or after a snowstorm until regular hours of operation.

The department keeps regular hours of operation because it has a one-shift crew, County Engineer Jake Hotchkiss said. 'We don't have the manpower to run two shifts of operation. We have it laid out for 12-hour days of snow removal,” he said.

The department does, however, take emergency requests from the Henry County Sheriff's Office. If there is a particular area that is causing accidents, the roads department will deem it an emergency and respond accordingly.

'Our goal is to get roads cleared as quickly and safely as we can,” Hotchkiss said.

Motor graders and truck plows will be called off the road if snow and blowing reduces visibility to hazardous working conditions, at the advice of the Henry County Engineer or a proxy. Previously, motor graders were not to start working until 7 a.m., according to the ordinance. The ordinance was changed so motor graders can begin with snow plows at 5 a.m.

Motor graders were originally scheduled to begin work at 7 a.m. because of daylight, but with improved LED lights, that is unnecessary, and they are able to start work as soon as possible.

'They moved so slowly it could be dangerous (in the dark),” Hotchkiss said about the 7 a.m. start time. 'Now, we'd like to get ahead of the traffic.”

Snow will not be removed from dirt roads or designated Level B or Level C roads.

In other news, the Ash Avenue bridge is open to traffic. Crews are working on armoring and finishing slopes this week.

Norris Asphalt Paving Co, from Ottumwa, is began work Monday on bridge approaches on Old Highway 34 over the Skunk River.

Last week, the roads department hauled resurfacing rock on 150th Street, started shoulder pull work on the Des Moines County Line east of New London, continued seeding operations and continued mowing shoulders.