Highway Department apologizes if cars recently sprayed by oil, offers remover
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By Steven Spencer
The Highway Department is offering oil remover to drivers who may have gotten oil spray on their vehicles.
County Engineer, Kyle Godar, said at the most recent county commissioners meeting that they’ve been testing potential alternatives to oil and chipping roads within the county.
He said that with the cost of oil doubling after 2020 the ability to keep the chip sealed roads from going back to gravel is questionable in the coming years, and recently did fog sealing on various roads in an effort to look at more cost effective treatment.
“We use a different kind of oil, it gets watered down, we spray it, allow it cure, don’t chip, and it seals the surface,” Godar said, adding that generally a fog seal treatment is used on shoulders where traffic can be kept off, and has been used at the elementary school and from Mozier to Hamburg in the past.
While testing different oil to water mixtures in the county they’ve found a ratio that would allow traffic after about three hours, depending on the weather and the amount sunlight, but while testing mixtures recently some cars may have gotten oil sprayed on them.
“If anybody had that issue they can contact the Highway Department, 618-576-2600, and we can provide them some oil remover,” he said.
Even with some vehicles getting some oil on them, Godar said that fog sealing may be a good alternative to oil and chipping in the future.
“I can do five times as much road fog sealing as I can chip sealing, so it’s a valuable tool to use going forward, but it’s just getting the process of how we’re going to do it,” Godar said.
When using the fog sealer in future, Godar said they’ll send out direct notices to residents who live on the road and possibly close the road for 24 hours.
“It’s not used everywhere,” Godar added. “But being able to do five times as much road for the same cost, it’s something we definitely need to use if we’re capable of using it.”
