Colbert County Budget Solutions John Bedford, P.E. County Engineer 2012 ACEA Convention

Colbert County, Alabama Located in Northwest AL, ALDOT Second Division Bordered by the Tennessee River to the North Population: 55,000 Road Miles: 430 Plant Mix, 200 Chip Seal, 30 Gravel Unit System – 6 Commissioners, 32 Employees (18 – Maintenance Crew, 7 – Mechanic Shop, 7 – Office Staff)

Road Department Revenues 4-Cent - $1,340,500 7-Cent - $1,275,000 Severance Tax - $100,000 Public Hwy - $150,000 (Equipment Budget)

Road Department Expenses Salaries and Benefits - $1,329,500 Insurance - $526,900 Road and Bridge Maintenance Expense - $350,975 Fuel - $110,000 Misc. - $735,725 (All other Dept. Expenses, Federal Match, Herbicide, Signs, Overhead, Etc.)

Telling Our Story Avoid “You never told me...” or “What Road and Bridge Maintenance Reports Monthly Commission Reports Newspaper Articles Keeping the Commission and the Public Informed Results: Objective: Tools:

Road and Bridge Maintenance Report First Completed in 2008, Updated in 2012 Overview of Road System List of Roads in Each District, including Surface Type, Length and Width Costs of Resurfacing 1 Mile Cost of Failing to Maintain Roads Gas Tax Distribution Formulas County Populations Possible Sources of New Revenue ACEA Materials and Data Local Legislature Contact Info

Monthly Commission Reports Status of Current Projects Maintenance Operations Being Performed Personnel Issues Discovery of New Concerns

Newspaper Articles We have built a very good relationship with our local paper. (Times Daily) They run a small story anytime we have a project starting, letting public know about traffic changes. Will run a follow up story when complete, highlighting what the project accomplished and if/how it saved money or improved travel. Encourage the public and local politicians to seek additional funding. Have run several stories for us focusing on the lack of funding and system maintenance needs.

Where Should We Focus? We had to decide what was the greatest limiting factor for use of County roads. Obviously, a bad road can still be used but a closed or posted bridge isolates entire areas of a County from travel or industry. With the importance of bridges in mind and the strict guidelines for use of funding on roads, we decided that our main focus would be on bridges.

Money Saving Approaches EBIT Inspections/Consultations Wooden Bridge Decks Stringer Additions False Bents Pile Encasements

EBIT Inspections ALDOT Load Rating Personnel noticed that stringer detail was not shown correctly during a visit. Recommended investigating reinforcement in deck. After we determined reinforcement and ALDOT re-evaluated stringers, we were able to go from a 10 ton posting to no posting at all.

EBIT Inspections On another occasion, we asked EBIT to evaluate our “abutment” walls. They agreed that they were actually “retaining” walls and we were able to remove the posting from the bridge.

Wooden Bridge Decks Four Bridges - $280,000 Replaced Deck on 4 Ton Bridge - $70,000 Replaced 4 Ton Bridge with Culvert - $200,000

Stringer Additions Two Bridges - $32,000

False Bents One Bridge - $24,500

Pile Encasements Two Bridges - $32,000

What About Roads? Limited use of Federal funding on roads originally built with Federal funds. Surface Treatments with Federal Funding – This year we initiated our first Federal Aid resurfacing project using a “G” “D” surface treatment as the final layer. Strip Patching – Aside from Federal Resurfacing, Surface Treatments are the only pavement we put down. Partnering With Other Counties – We bought liquid asphalt from Lauderdale and Lawrence Counties for years before we could buy a tank of our own. Recently we have swapped out our shoulder machine with Franklin County for some FDR work.

Questions ? Contact Info. John Bedford, County Engineer