Road & Bridge: county paved roads largely in poor condition; commissioners approve Highway Users Tax Fund change report

Chaffee County Road & Bridge staff told the Board of County Commissioners that the county’s paved network is in poor condition and that a recent change report submitted to the state Highway Users Tax Fund (HUTF) is intended to improve the county’s funding share for specific road segments.

Mark, introduced to the commissioners as the Road & Bridge department head, said the county maintains about 370 miles of paved roads plus roughly the same amount of gravel roads. “Our paved roads are 90% poor condition,” he said in the meeting. Mark said the county paid for two miles of overlay last year and that the change report he submitted identifies roughly $1,000,000 of work including chip seals and overlays on several sections; the report also records a specific overlay that added two inches of asphalt and one foot of lane width on County Road 162 as part of an effort to raise the condition score used in the HUTF formula.

Mark told commissioners that rising asphalt and oil costs over the last decade have sharply increased resurfacing expenses, that dust-control costs have risen, and that HUTF — which is funded primarily through fuel taxes — faces structural pressure as vehicle and fuel dynamics change. He explained that state and federal matching rules and the county’s limited property-tax transfers constrain the Road & Bridge budget. “If I add a 2-inch overlay and a foot of width, it should give us more money for that section of road,” Mark said; he cautioned that the HUTF formula is complex and that local results vary.

After questions from commissioners, the board made a motion and approved the Highway Users Tax Fund change report Mark presented; commissioners asked for continued updates on condition scores and funding options.

The report and discussion did not change any county tax rates or adopt new programs during the meeting.