E-28 paving project could be biggest one yet

     During the Aug. 6 Jones County Supervisors meeting, County Engineer Derek Snead provided an update on the County Road E-28/Ridge Road PCC paving project, which is slated for Fiscal Year 2026 on the county's five-year construction program.

   Snead sought the board's approval to apply for a Site Specific TSIP (Traffic Safety Improvement Program) grant to apply toward the overall project costs of grading and paving 2.7 miles of roadway.

   The board approved the $500,000 ask.

   "We've got a number of improvements that we'd like to incorporate on that project," Snead said.

   The scope of the project is from County Road X-28 east to the City of Anamosa corporation limits at the Buffalo Creek Bridge.

   "Right now it's 11-foot lane widths and 3-to-4-foot shoulders out there," he said. We're going to do 12-foot lanes with 8-foot shoulders. That's the proposal. It would also include curve corrections, safety edge, rumble strips on the edge, striping."

   Snead said the safety improvements will be quite similar to the E-34 project they just completed.

   The need to repave the roadway is due to heavy and large truck traffic that utilizes E-28.

   "We are doing a lot of alignment changes," added Snead. "There are a number of different curves which are sharper than what the design guidelines recommend for design speed for a paved roadway."

   Secondary Roads has been very successful in the past securing not only safety TSIP funds for road projects, but securing the full allotment of $500,000. This helps to offset the cost of road projects.

   The TSIP grant is due Aug. 15. He should hear back in December or January whether he was successful or not.

   Snead said over the next couple of months, his office will proceed with the project design.

   "We'd hope to wrap up final project plans in the spring of 2025. That would give us roughly six to eight months for right of way negotiations."

   An anticipated letting would take place in the spring of 2026, with construction to follow that construction season. Completion of the project is anticipated by November 2026.

   Snead admitted that this timeline was pretty aggressive for a project like this. A lot of right of way would be needed to make this project a success.

   "Probably 40 percent of it (right of way), maybe a touch more," he said, "is from two landowners. That's a huge hurdle with a large percentage of it depending on two owners. The other 60 percent is from a lot of people."

   He also anticipates closing the road to traffic during the duration of the project, noting it'd be difficult to do without doing so.

   Supervisor Jeff Swisher commented on the poor condition of E-28, saying this paving project needs to happen.

   Snead said his office is working on collecting as much information and putting the full design together before sharing too much with landowners.

   "In the past, we've put together some ideas and shared those things and then it changes and then you have a negative connotation right before you try to get going."

   With the realignment, Snead explained the goal is to "keep as much of the roadbed in its existing location as possible.

   "That's going to save us money," he added. "We tried to improve sight distances as much as we can in a couple of critical locations."

   Snead admitted that this road project, when it's all said and done, will be the biggest his department has ever done under his leadership.