While major projects take a hit, MoDOT will continue making quick fixes.
You may have noticed new concrete patches on some Mid-Missouri highways.
You can thank, or blame, the heat for those.
MoDOT calls them blow up spots.
It’s not the first time extreme weather has affected Missouri roads this year.
KRCG’s Facebook Crew took a look Monday at how MoDOT is handing these types of problems given the tight budget.
Missouri’s extreme heat wave has caused a number of bumps on Highway 54 near Holts Summit.
"If we have a lot of moisture, it gets under the road. It usually happens more in concrete than asphalt,” MoDOT Kent Howard said. “The moisture gets underneath it and it expands than it blows up. That’s what you see most of time during the hot summer months."
Howard told me you never know when a spot in the road will blow up. It all depends on how hot it is outside and the moisture in the concrete. So Howard said it's like a ticking time bomb just waiting to go off.
"Sometimes you'll go all summer without having one and sometimes you may have a couple a day. It just depends on the concrete and the conditions,” Howard said.
Even with MoDOT’s budget dwindling, the transportation department still has the money it needs to fix weather-related issues.
"They’re not saving money where we're at. New construction and stuff like that is what MoDOT is cutting back on,” Howard said. “We’re still getting basically the same amount of money as we always have."
Howard said when they fix breaks in the road the only costs are concrete and paying employees.
So tell us what you think. Has the weather affected your driveway or the roads by your house?
Preview Story:
Tonight at ten KRCG's Facebook Crew takes a look at how Missouri’s extreme weather this year has affected the roadways, and how MoDOT plans to keep up with the issues, while the budget dwindles.
So tell us what you think. Has your road or driveway been affected by the weather this year?
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