Fresh Complaints About Fresh Chip Seal in Twin Falls Idaho

I’m not a fan of chip seal.  I’ve experienced punctured tires after driving through the mix on two different occasions.  Do I know it was the seal or was it something else?  I can’t say.  The timing seemed to make me believe it was a cause.

I would prefer another form of resurfacing streets, however.  One day a guy here at work looked up the cost of new asphalt versus chip seal, and there was no contest.  The latter is nearly ten times less.  Judging by how local taxpayers react to spending money (think the bond issue for new firehouses) they’ll accept some inconvenience.  Some, but not all.

I received a message from a member of the KLIX audience.  He’s normally not a man I would call a complainer.  When he speaks out, usually it’s for good reason.  It’s not the chip seal that bothers him, it’s the traffic delays the surfacing causes.  As he explained it, there were few warning signs in advance of the work zone, traffic had to squeeze into one lane, and there wasn’t anyone with a flag offering directions.

I believe the fellow has a legitimate complaint, but I also wonder about the labor shortage.  Members of the city council have told me filling vacancies has been a challenge.  There was a time when any government job was coveted for its benefits.  Not so much in modern times.

As an aside, streets that get heavier traffic are better to drive on after the sealant goes down than streets with lighter traffic.  I could barely get traction on Washington Street the first morning after treatment.  A day later it was firm.

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