BATH TOWNSHIP — Bath Township’s 2018 road construction season is in full swing as the month of August comes to an end.
This year, the township is saving taxpayer dollars by participating in the Greene County Engineer’s collective bid program and is using a paving contractor, John R. Jurgensen Company, to complete some of the road projects.
On Aug. 28, road construction crews applied the first layer of a packed, 2-inch asphalt overlay to both the southern and northern sections of Byron Road that were milled earlier this month. The crews then applied a second coat of asphalt overlay to the southern section and part of the northern section of the 2.636-mile road Aug. 29 and finished the northern section Aug. 30. Center and edge line markings will be painted on the new surface in September. Costs of the Byron Road project will total to approximately $291,000.
Township Road Supervisor Mike Rhoades told township trustees during the Aug. 29 township meeting that the township road crew would follow up by applying road-edge berming on Byron Road to support the asphalt edge and provide a smooth transition from the road edge to the existing grade of the landscape. Rhoades noted that a section of the newly paved road shifted after the first application of asphalt overlay was applied. However, the section of road was repaired Aug. 29.
“We ran into an issue on South Byron Road where a couple of areas of asphalt had split. There was a problem with the tack not being in place in those spots, and the asphalt shifted,” said Rhoades. “They (road contractor crew) cut out those places, removed the asphalt, tacked it again and laid asphalt over it. They assured me that if we ran into any problems, they would take care of it.”
Bath Township Trustee John Martin inquired about a warranty on the roadwork. Rhodes told Martin that the road contractor provided the township with a one-year guarantee on the work.
According to Rhoades, the milling of Ravenwood Drive and Clearcreek Trail is scheduled to begin after the Labor Day weekend. Once the milling projects are completed, the construction crews will apply a 2-inch asphalt overlay to both roads and line markings to Ravenwood Drive. The Ravenwood Drive project, which spans 0.638 mile, will cost the township about $72,700. The milling and repaving of the 0.777-mile stretch of Clearcreek Trail will total approximately $90,600.
Plans are underway to mill and apply a 2-inch asphalt overlay to a 0.513-mile section of Bath Road, from State Route 4 to 30 feet beyond Kitridge Road, in late September. Rhoades said the township is holding off proceeding with the Bath Road project until most of the roadwork is completed on State Route 4. Road crews will also paint center and edge line marking on the road, bringing the total price of the project to $45,800.
More road improvement projects will continue through the fall months, including the repainting of the center and edge line markings on Old Yellow Springs Road for an estimated cost of $650. Rhoades said the lines needed a fresh coat of paint following a crack seal surface treatment that was applied in 2017.
A crack sealant will be applied to Adams Road, Black Lane and Haddix Road as daily temperatures become cooler. The centerline marking on Adams Road will also be changed to solid, double yellow lines, indicating a no-passing zone in both directions of the 0.912-mile road.
The Black Lane project, which spans 0.717 of a mile, will cost the township $1,500, and the 0.696-mile stretch of Haddix Road will run $3,400. The crack seal treatment and new line markings on Adams Road will total $2,600.
According to Rhoades, an asphalt skin patching pavement treatment will be used to extend the surface life of Armstrong Road, Lower Valley Pike, Mud Run Road and Union Road. The Armstrong Road project, which will cover 1.524 miles, will cost approximately $4,150. The estimated price for the Lower Valley project, which includes 0.889 mile of road, will total $2,400. The skin patch treatment on the 0.506-mile-long Mud Run Road will add up to approximately $1,400, and the 0.749-mile stretch of Union Road will cost $2,000.
In June, the township road crew applied a crack seal surface treatment to Baker Road at a cost of $1,200. The township also repaired a 12-by-30-foot section of Valleyview Drive with a 2-inch asphalt overlay in July. Rhoades noted that the project cost approximately $400.
“We are moving forward with these road projects,” Rhoades said. “Weather permitting, we will complete the projects as scheduled.”
Earlier this year, township trustees approved a road budget totaling $519,400 to fund the 2018 road construction season. In 2016, township voters approved a 2.2-mill road levy over a five-year period that provides $198,000 annually towards road improvements, according to Bath Township Fiscal Officer Elaine Brown.
