Henry County road crews continue maintenance projects

MT. PLEASANT — Henry County Roads department continues maintenance in the county beyond consistent blading and mowing.

Crews installed a concrete blanket on two culverts this past week.

One was installed on 110th Street, north of Winfield. Another was installed on River Road, east of Highway 218.

“It is a tool we use on these larger culverts to help saves some of these costs of lining or replacement,” County Engineer Jack Hotchkiss said.

Additionally, crews relayed reinforced concrete pipe for a diversion ditch along 235th Street.

“We have metal culverts, concrete pipe, and then concrete box culverts,” Hotchkiss said. “Concrete box culverts are usually cast in place, then concrete pipe are 8 or 6 feet sections. Originally, when they were put in, the standard was to not bolt those together. Then the standard was that they would bolt the outside ones where they would experience the freeze thaw motion of movement. What we have determined now, is that we bolt them all.”

“When you bolt the outside two together, that’s great, it keeps the outside two together, but now it moves in closer,” he said. “A lot of those original ones out there were just laid in there.”

“Our practice now is to bolt them, then we use mortar to fill around them so they’re hopefully a little better structure,” Hotchkiss said.

A small grading project was started and completed on Hickory Avenue, a level B road.

Sign reflectivity checks began this week, as well.

According to Hotchkiss, while Old Highway 34 will be closed for three weeks from the county line to the intersection of Benton Avenue starting Wednesday, the intersection on the county line will remain open.

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